Bundaberg Regional Council considering land donation for new flight simulator

The donation of a $405k block of land for a flight simulator that would be the first of its kind in the Southern Hemisphere, is up for debate at the Bundaberg council.

An artist impression of the RFDS simulation hub.

Flight simulation will reach new heights in Bundaberg if the council agrees to donate land near the airport for the first facility of its kind in the Southern Hemisphere.

The block of land sought by the Royal Flying Doctor Service is valued at $405,000 and would mean it could be built right next to the Bundaberg RFDS base and aeromedical facility.

The matter was discussed in the Bundaberg Regional Council briefing meeting on Wednesday.

The flight simulator would inject about $6 million into the Bundaberg economy each year, with an estimated $20 million to be injected during the construction phase alone.

The RFDS recently moved to using Beechcraft King Air 360 aircraft as the Beechcraft King Air 200 and 350 aircraft they currently fly are no longer manufactured.

The use of the Beechcraft King Air 360 has brought a need for a new flight simulator and the closest for that type of plane is located in Florida in the USA.

The Beechcraft King Air 360 flight simulator would be the first in the Southern Hemisphere.

State-of-the-art technologies such as virtual reality, augmented reality and high-fidelity immersive training scenarios would be used to attract and train aeromedical professionals from across Australia and the Asia-Pacific region.

The construction of the simulation hub will be funded through a $15 million allocation of the Federal Government’s Hinkler Regional Deal.

Bundaberg Mayor Jack Dempsey said the project was exciting for Bundaberg and would see the region’s aviation training sector take off.

“RFDS says that when fully operational, all of its 75 pilots will spend at least two weeks each year at the simulator in Bundaberg,” he said.

“The nearest Beechcraft King Air 360 flight simulator is in Florida, USA. Given the current circumstances, travelling to the United States for flight training is simply not practical nor financially sustainable over the long term.

“This equates to almost 1100 nights of accommodation in the region each year.

“It’s also on top of the $6.5 million that the Bundaberg aeromedical base and patient transfer facility currently injects into the regional economy each year and the 50 FTE jobs it supports.”

The block is expected to be discussed further in next week’s ordinary council meeting.

Originally published as Bundaberg Regional Council considering land donation for new flight simulator