Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea to Australia, 24/7
Air Ambulance Port Moresby to Brisbane
Bed-to-bed transfers with a medical team on board and ground ambulances at both ends. About 3 hours nonstop. No fuel stop, and no time difference.
Send patient details
We've filled in Port Moresby and Brisbane; change them if needed. A coordinator calls you back to go through the rest.
- Distance
- About 2,090 km
- Flight time
- About 3 hours nonstop
- Typical aircraft
- Learjet or Hawker 800
- Fuel stop?
- No
Port Moresby Jacksons (POM) to Brisbane (BNE). Times are planning estimates and change with winds, aircraft and the patient's needs.
What is involved in getting a patient from Port Moresby to Brisbane?
Port Moresby to Brisbane is one of the shortest international air ambulance routes into Australia, and a well-used one. Papua New Guinea's specialist and intensive care capacity is limited, so seriously ill and injured patients are regularly flown south.
Many of the people moved on this route work in PNG's mining, energy and construction sectors. Others are aid workers, government staff, and Australians visiting family.
How long is the flight, and does it need a fuel stop?
At about 2,100 kilometres, a Learjet or Hawker 800 flies Jacksons International Airport to Brisbane nonstop in around three hours. The patient clears the Australian border in Brisbane.
Port Moresby and Brisbane share a time zone and neither uses daylight saving, so the PNG and Brisbane doctors are always on the same clock.
Cairns is closer, at about 840 kilometres, and is sometimes the right destination for a very unstable patient. When the patient needs specialist services such as neurosurgery, major burns or complex cardiac care, we usually fly direct to Brisbane rather than transfer twice.
Why do Australians need to come home from Port Moresby?
Trauma
Road accidents, workplace injuries and injuries from violence that need surgery or intensive care beyond what is available locally.
Resource and project workers
Workers at mine, gas and construction sites who are flown from site to Port Moresby, then on to Australia for definitive care.
Malaria and serious infections
Severe malaria, sepsis and other infections that need intensive care.
Heart problems, stroke and pregnancy complications
Medical emergencies in expatriates and visitors where the local capacity isn't enough.
Can you arrange the ambulance and hospital at both ends?
Yes. The transfer is planned bed to bed, so the family doesn't have to organise anything at either end.
In Port Moresby
Patients are usually at Pacific International Hospital or Port Moresby General Hospital, or have been brought in from a site clinic or a provincial hospital. We speak with the treating doctor and, for workers, the site medical team.
Security and road conditions in Port Moresby can affect the ambulance run to Jacksons Airport, so we plan the transfer with the hospital and, where relevant, the employer's security team.
In Brisbane
Brisbane receiving hospitals include Royal Brisbane and Women's, Princess Alexandra, The Prince Charles Hospital and the private hospitals. We confirm acceptance and a bed before departure.
A road ambulance meets the aircraft at Brisbane Airport. The flight team hands over in person with the PNG medical records and flight notes.
Does the patient need an air ambulance?
Direct scheduled flights between Port Moresby and Brisbane take about three hours. A stable patient may be able to fly with a nurse escort, subject to the airline's medical clearance, but many patients on this route need an air ambulance.
What documents are needed from Port Moresby to Brisbane?
For Port Moresby to Brisbane we need the passport, the treating doctor's report and, for workers, the employer's authority to proceed and any site medical notes. A short summary from the site clinic of what happened and what treatment was given helps the Brisbane team a great deal.
PNG nationals and other non-Australians coming for treatment need an Australian visa first, and the Brisbane hospital usually wants confirmation of who is paying before it accepts an overseas patient. Starting both on the first day is the single biggest thing that shortens the wait on this route.
FAQ