Facilities for Troop Lift Helicopter, RAAF Base Townsville, QLD.

Defence Forward Planning

Defence’s submission stated that

…government is currently considering some later phases of Project Air 9000, replacement or refurbishment of Black Hawk and replacement of Sea King helicopters. Depending on options selected by Government, these phases may have future implications for the 5 Avn Regt precinct.¹

At the hearing Defence amended this statement:

On 19 June this year, the Prime Minister and the Minister for Defence announced the purchase of an additional 34 multi-role helicopters and that these would be purchased under Project Air 9000 phases 4 to 6 to replace the remaining Black Hawks of 5 Avn Regt and the Sea King helicopter fleets.²

The Committee queried what impact this operational change would have on the current proposal. Defence responded that it had considered the possibility of the operational change occurring and as such had planned for both eventualities. Defence stated that it was confident that it was

…well placed to continue development to now cater for the replacement of the remaining Black Hawks with MRH90’s.³

The Committee questioned Defence on the long term planning for RAAF Base Townsville. Defence responded that their

…long term plan is that RAAF Base Townsville will be an enduring base and that 5 Avn Regt will remain at RAAF Base Townsville.⁴

Other Issues

Townsville Airport submitted that it has been consulting with Defence regarding the Northern Australian Aeronautical Centre of Excellence (NAACEX) which:

Is designed to compliment and improve the operations of both civilian and military activities at Townsville Airport.⁵

Townsville Airport also submitted that it supports the redevelopment, and that it feels that

…the NAACEX initiative by [Townsville Airport] offers an alternative for [Defence] when considering the most cost effective way in which to provide facilities and services to support the MRH90 and other [Defence] owned platforms and systems.⁶

Mr Lindsay MP, the local Federal Member, appeared before the Committee and stated that he supported the current proposal. Mr Lindsay drew the Committee’s attention to issues such as Defence’s future planning to the support the MRH90’s, the Townville Airport proposal and the possibility that Defence may purchase more CH47 Chinook helicopters. Mr Lindsay stated that he wanted the Committee to consider the proposal

…in a holistic way to the future of what Defence proposes a little bit down the track for the city in relation to the development of the aviation industry.⁷

The Committee however, cannot give due consideration to issues relating to future developments as they are not directly related to the proposal that is currently before it.

Joint User Arrangements

RAAF Base Townsville Runway Access

At the hearing, the Committee heard that RAAF Base Townsville shares the runway with the civilian airport. The Committee requested clarification of the Joint User deed between Townsville Airport and Defence, to ensure that

…we [the Commonwealth] are not going to invest $20 million in a base that might become redundant next year with no ongoing lease.⁸

Defence stated that the Joint User deed is due for renewal, and that it expects the deed to be renewed. Further, Defence stated that:

The runway belongs to the Commonwealth and the lease is for the airport to actually make use of it.⁹

Security Considerations

The Committee raised concerns as to the proximity of the civilian airport to the RAAF Base’s helicopter hangars. Defence responded that:

Both the Air Force, the military defence, side of the base and the Townsville Airport are secure areas. Townsville Airport has security systems in place with airside identity cards for all their personnel on the hardstand and the airside of the airport… The Defence part of the airfield similarly has security measures in place. Both Townsville Airport and Defence have security and safety patrols frequenting the area. Defence’s side includes military working dogs.¹⁰

Occupational Health and Safety Issues (OH&S)

Defence submitted that the facilities would comply with the relevant sections of:

• the Occupational Health and Safety (Commonwealth Employees) Act 1991;
• the Department of Defence Occupational Health and Safety Manual; and
• Queensland Government Occupational Health and Safety Legislation. ¹¹

At the Hearing the Committee enquired if Defence was satisfied that it had addressed all relevant OH&S concerns. Defence responded that it was confident that the facilities would be in compliance with all relevant OH&S guidelines. Defence added that:

The facility will be inspected regularly and will meet the federal and state government requirements.¹²

Environmental Considerations

Town Common

Mr Lindsay, assured the Committee that the proximity of the base to the town common was not likely to raise any issues.¹³ The Committee raised this consideration with Defence and heard that the town common

… is a coastal wetlands area frequented by birds and is the town environmental park.¹⁴

Defence assured the Committee that pollutants from the 5 Avn Regt would not impact on the town common. The Committee heard that the 5 Avn Regt is serviced by four oil-water separators and all the service run-off is directed through those filters to separate solids and oil out of the water prior to its disposal on the town common. Defence informed the Committee that CSI North Queensland monitors the aviation base, with approximately 50 groundwater monitoring bores on site:

This is done on an annual basis so we are monitoring to ensure that there is no groundwater plume and we are quite happy that we will not affect the town common.¹⁵

Energy Efficiency

Defence submitted that Ecologically Sustainable Development (ESD) had been utilised in the design of the facilities. This included:

• analysing construction materials, finishes and engineering services against ESD criteria;
• specific performance targets for energy savings;
• water reduction; and
• waste reduction.¹⁶

Defence’s submission stated that the project has adopted

…cost effective ESD as a key objective in the design, development and delivery of new and refurbished facilities.¹⁷

Further, Defence stated that

…the energy efficiency of the new buildings will be audited within twelve months of occupancy.¹⁸

Defence submitted that the ESD design included:

• using insulation and weatherproofing seals;
• using energy efficient lighting and lighting control systems;
• using energy efficient plant and equipment;
• providing the capability to control energy use by zones within the facility;
• specification of waterless urinals and AAA water efficient fixtures; and
• using Building Management Systems as part of an area wide energy management strategy.¹⁹

At the hearing the Committee heard that the new Training and Mission Planning facility will be able to achieve a four Green Star rating, which is a rating system that was developed for office buildings.²⁰

Scope

Defence submitted that part of the redevelopment will involve re-designing the Aircraft shelters to “suit tail first parking”.²¹

At the hearing the Committee asked Defence about the extent of the works proposed for the hangars, and the reasons for the modifications. Defence responded that as the wheelbase of the MRH90 is wider than the Black Hawk, the concrete pads in the hangars would be widened. The MRH90 would be parked tail first for logistical reasons, which necessitated moving some lights in the hangar. Additionally, Defence would be upgrading the fire detection systems and security access to the hangars.²²

Project Delivery

The Committee questioned Defence as to the delivery of the project and the special planning that Defence had undertaken in this regard. Defence tabled a phasing plan which demonstrated how the works would be phased in while maintaining the functioning of the 5 Avn Regt. Further, as much of the works would be performed on the hangars that the 171 st Aviation Squadron Black Hawks vacated, disruption during the construction period would be minimised.²³

Quality of Evidence

At the hearing the Committee expressed its appreciation to Defence for the comprehensive site inspection and the quality of evidence provided to the inquiry.²⁴

Hon Judi Moylan MP
Chair
13 September 2006

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Appendix C, Submission No. 1, paragraph 61 Back

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Appendix C, Submission No. 1, paragraph 21 Back

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