General News
16 July, 2025
Busy year for Mount Isa's LifeFlight service
The Mount Isa-based LifeFlight team travelled far and wide for rescues across the North West in 2024-25.
The Mount Isa LifeFlight aeromedical crew helped a record number of people in 2024-25, new data reveals.
Crews in the North West clocked up 220 flying hours to airlift bogged campers, people thrown from horses and motorists injured in car crashes.
They airlifted 10 per cent more patients and flew 30 per cent more missions over the 12-month period.
The number contributed to another record year for the aeromedical organisation, with 8497 people helped in 2024-25 – 3.9 per cent higher than 2023-24.
The Mount Isa base will celebrate a major milestone this year when the new joint LifeFlight-Royal Flying Doctor Service base opens, bringing a whole new capability to the region.
LifeFlight will house a new AW139 at the base enabling the service to go farther and faster.
LifeFlight’s chief operating officer Lee Schofield said the Mount Isa crew completed some of the most challenging missions due to the terrain and sheer distances involved.
“The North West is larger than the size of New Zealand, so that does make for unique missions, but the Mount Isa team always rises to the challenge as evidenced by some spectacular rescues in the past year,” he said.
“The new AW139 will help to improve our response.”
Since taking to the skies 46 years ago LifeFlight has helped more than 90,000 people.