Bruce Scott (Maranoa, National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I want to continue my contribution honouring the Royal Flying Doctor Service. The Reverend John Flynn, through Frontier Services, has given us a great legacy of health care and a great mantle of safety across rural and remote parts of Australia. I know of no other service in the world that could match the Royal Flying Doctor Service for the work they do and the 24-hour service they provide.

You should see some of the remote airstrips that these pilots fly onto. I know that many people in this House would not hop on some of the lighter planes—although they are very sophisticated—and they certainly would not want to be flown into some of those very difficult situations, in circumstances where the airstrip might just be lit by flares. I admire the pilots and the doctors and I also admire the nurses, who so often provide care and compassion during the transfer of people in emergency situations out of remote locations.

Over the last few weeks in western Queensland there have been race meetings, including those at Birdsville and Bedourie and this week at Betoota, where they will once again be raising money for the Royal Flying Doctor Service because they believe in it so much. It is an important part of their lives. It is a way of life out there to support the Royal Flying Doctor Service. Once again, I want to commend all who have worked towards and supported the Reverend John Flynn’s vision, a vision from so long ago, and all who have worked in the Royal Flying Doctor Service over the last 80 years.