Flight Inspection Service Keeps Holiday-makers Safe

Corporate and International Affairs
GPO Box 367, Canberra ACT 2601
25 Constitution Avenue, Canberra City 2600
Phone 02 6257 2828
Fax 02 6268 5688
ABN 59 698 720 886

MEDIA RELEASE No: 44/09

1 December 2009

Flight Inspection Service keeps holiday-makers safe

Airservices Flight Inspection Service (FIS) will check critical air navigation equipment this December to ensure that aircraft and their passengers make it to their destinations safely this holiday season.

Checking the functional accuracy of the equipment is critical to the safety of Australia's flying public.

The Brisbane-based service checks the 500 plus navigational aids installed by Airservices for flight safety at regional and major airports, aerodromes and airstrips on a three-year rotational basis.

The service will undertake 20 separate routine or special flight inspections on equipment at:

QLD Barcaldine, Mount Isa
NT Tennant Creek
VIC Melbourne, Bolinda, Wonthaggi, Epping
NSW Sydney, Rockdale.

Equipment being tested includes instrument landing systems (ILS), distance measuring equipment (DME), non-directional beacons (NDB) and VHF Omni Range (VOR) navigational aids.

Positional and navigational information is relayed from these aids to aircraft and assists pilots in landing safely.

The inspections will be performed by specialist aircrew who operate the twin-engine Beechcraft King Air aircraft and equipment to collect precision data while airborne

Data gathered is assessed and analysed by Airservices maintenance and engineering employees to ensure each navigation aid is operating accurately.

For media enquiries or an image of the King Air and its equipment call:
02 6257 2828
or email [email protected]


Airservices Australia is a Government owned organisation responsible for the safe and efficient management of air traffic across 11 per cent of the world's air space. Services include air traffic control, airspace management, aeronautical information, radar communications, radio navigation aids, aviation maintenance and engineering, environmental management and aviation rescue and firefighting.

SOURCE: Airservices