Current Operations
Today the airbase has multiple roles in that of a staging base for the workers in the nearby offshore oil and gas fields but in addition it is now also an Aeromedical Retrieval and Search & Rescue (S.A.R.) base from which CHC in association with LINK HEALTH (www.linkhealth.com.au) operate with Critical Care Flight Paramedics on board. Operations include oil & gas companies, RFDS calls and AusSAR activations.Workers are flown into the base by fixed wing aircraft and then transferred to helicopters at Truscott for the final flight leg to the offshore platforms in and around the Timor Sea. Currently Super Puma helicopters operated by CHC Helicopters are based at Mungalalu Truscott and Bristow Helicopters are preparing to begin operations from the base in late 2007. Other regular users of the base include various pearl farm operators from the region and the Australian Customs and Border Protection Service who use the airbase as a staging area for their aerial surveillance patrols in the area.
Mungalalu Truscott is the largest all weather airbase in the Far North Kimberley Region. The sealed runway with PAPI lights for night operations is the premier option for companies with business interests in the region. Mungalalu Truscott complies with CASA MoS 139 regulation and allows unrestricted operations for aircraft up to 29 seat capacity. The runway is 1,800 m × 30 m (5,906 ft × 98 ft) with turning nodes, ramps and taxiways, all areas have recently been sealed. Over the past 10 years the airfield has been regularly inspected by Connell Wagner and latest advice is that the pavement could trial aircraft with MAUW of 20 tonnes. In the past years, numerous aircraft types have utilised the Truscott aerodrome, they have included Fairchild Metro 23, Embraer EMB 120 Brasilia and Bombardier Dash 8. The Paspaley pearling company subsidiary, Pearl Aviation, stages its Grumman Mallard flying boats from Truscott in support of its pearling operations in the region.
As well as the regular aircraft operations from the base, the Wunambal Gaambera traditional owners operate a small tour company in the area around the base, guiding tourists around the heritage listed site, visiting several World War II relic sites along with some significant Aboriginal rock art sites found around the base. Expedition cruise vessels, such as the MV Orion operated by Orion Expedition Cruises also visit the base.
Read more about this topic: Mungalalu Truscott Airbase
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