Arabic version: بقاء مهبطي طائرات مروحية في مستشفيين بجنوب أستراليا مغلقين

According to ABC News, medical retrieval helicopters still cannot use helipads at regional hospitals in Murray Bridge and Victor Harbor, South Australia. MedSTAR staff are instead landing at nearby ovals, with local ambulances transporting patients between the landing sites and hospitals.

The two sites are the last to reopen after 13 regional helipads were temporarily closed in 2024 because they did not meet updated Civil Aviation Safety Authority guidelines. Babcock, which operates the MedSTAR helicopter service for the state government, must certify the helipads as safe before they can return to use.

South Australian Health Minister Blair Boyer said issues at Murray Bridge were close to resolution and the helipad would reopen “soon”. Concerns there include the required downwash exclusion zone and nearby houses. One Nation member for Hammond Robert Roylance said he understood a 66-metre space was required around the landing site and that several homes were within that area. He called for a clearer timeframe for the helipad to become operational.

At Victor Harbor, Mr Boyer described the situation as “complex” and said it would require longer-term planning. The Victor Harbor Childcare and Education Centre is beside the helipad and has a peppercorn lease with SA Health until 2030. Independent Finniss member Lou Nicholson said she understood the government did not intend to wait for the lease to expire if moving the childcare centre was the path forward. Mr Boyer said $23.4 million had been invested in regional helipad upgrades, while alternative nearby sites continued to support medical retrieval services.