QLD Police to get Seven New Aircraft

Queensland Police Service (QPS) will add five new King Air 360s and two Gulfstream G280s to its fleet.

The King Airs will be based at Cairns, Mount Isa and Brisbane, with the jets based at Brisbane.

The total value of the orders is thought to be around $101 million.

The new aircraft will provide the operational capability to conduct organ retrieval flights to locations anywhere in Australia and New Zealand. In the last 18 months, QPS has conducted more than 100 organ retrieval operations.

“Following extensive consultation and evaluation, the QPS has purchased two new mid-sized jets and five new turbo-prop aircraft to replace the current outdated fleet,” Acting Police Minister Mark Furner said yesterday.

“The modern aircraft will boost capacity and capability across its extensive government operations which includes life-saving organ transfers, specialist police operations, general transportation to remote areas and prisoner transfers.

“This investment will ensure regional communities and the south-east corner alike are safeguarded with versatile aircraft capable of deploying specialist police, assisting in search and rescues and providing disaster relief at a moment’s notice.”

The King Airs will be special-mission platforms customised for QPS with extra weight, cargo doors, gravel protection kits and extended range.

“We’re honored the Queensland Police Service has chosen the Beechcraft King Air to support their law enforcement mission,” said Bob Gibbs, vice president, Special Mission Sales for Textron Aviation.

“The King Air continues to be selected for a wide range of special mission roles around the world due to the aircraft’s capabilities and reliability.”

Acting Assistant Commissioner Marcus Hill said the two jets will replace the old Citation and Hawker jets which were recently sold after reaching the end of their economic and operational lives.

“The new jets have been purposely designed with a utility interior fit out to ensure they are adequate for a range of transportation requirements while representing value-for-money,” he said.

“Demand for aviation services continues to rise significantly and this replacement fleet will ensure we have the capacity and capability to effectively manage these services for communities across the state now and into the future."

The five King Airs are expected to be delivered to QPS over the course of 2023.