A Highway Landing in the Australian Outback

The Central Ops division of Australia’s Royal Flying Doctor Service (RFDS) recently simulated a road incident on a remote portion of the A87 Stuart Highway, landing a Pilatus PC-24 twinjet on the Traeger Road Strip. This was the first time a PC-24 landed on an Australian Outback highway, according to Pilatus Aircraft.

In a video of the landing and subsequent takeoff, the highway is closed to traffic, and an aiming point is painted across the highway to help guide the pilot’s touchdown point. The landing is done smoothly, despite the 12-knot crosswind and temperature greater than 100 degrees F. On takeoff, dust at the side of the road illustrates the effect of the crosswind as well as wingtip vortices on the downwind side of the road. 

The area where the simulation took place is north of Glendambo in South Australia, and the highway extends 1,740 miles (2,800 kilometers), serving an area with a population of more than 2.1 million but with only five hospitals. “In comparison, Switzerland is 56 times smaller and has approximately 276 hospitals. The RFDS plays an essential role in enabling communities to exist in such remote areas,” according to Pilatus.