CAIRNS' rescue chopper has been identified as requiring daily maintenance to prevent its tail falling off. 

Italian helicopter manufacturer AgustaWestland has informed the Queensland Government that three of its five AW139 emergency helicopters will require daily inspections of their tailbooms, including the helicopter based in Cairns.

The company advised in a worldwide technical bulletin two weeks ago of a possible issue with debonding on the tailboom on all AW139s.

An Emergency Management Queensland spokeswoman said the department would fully comply with the warning.

There were no plans to take the Cairns-based AW139 helicopter out of service, other than for regular scheduled maintenance.

"The Civil Aviation Safety Authority’s airworthiness directive is being strictly adhered to by our engineers in Cairns," the spokeswoman said.

"EMQ is complying with the manufacturer’s directive and is undertaking daily inspections."

The State Government introduced the $48 million AW139 helicopters in May last year in an effort to boost range and speed.

The purchase of the three costly helicopters has been criticised by the State Opposition, which
claims the choppers have limited capacity for stretchers, were unable to land on pontoons and had searchlights that did not work properly.

At one stage, a Bell412 covering Townsville was based in Cairns, but it was sent back to Brisbane needing maintenance, leaving a single ageing chopper to service Brisbane, Townsville and Cairns.

Defending the purchase, Emergency Services Minister Neil Roberts said the AW139s had significantly enhanced EMQ’s aero-medical and air rescue capabilities.

"The AW139 helicopter has a greater range, an increased payload, improved fuel economy and improved transit times for patient retrievals due to their faster speed," he said.

He said the AW139 could carry more people than the Bell412, and the department was working to address the spotlight issue.

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