Royal Flying Doctor Outback Heritage Experience
Discover the lifesaving history of the mantle of safety covering remote Australia.
Located at Broken Hill Airport, the RFDS Outback Heritage Centre offers interactive displays, historical aircraft, and live operational insights into outback medical care. Open daily from 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM.
Nearly a Century of the Mantle of Safety
The Royal Flying Doctor Service established its Broken Hill base in 1936, making it the fourth RFDS base in Australia and, today, the largest in the country. The service's first Broken Hill aircraft, a de Havilland Fox Moth, began flying operations in 1937, and it was during Queen Elizabeth II's 1954 visit to Australia that the organisation was granted its "Royal" prefix.
A Living Museum at a Working Base
Uniquely, the Broken Hill Outback Heritage Centre operates at a genuine working RFDS airport base, allowing visitors to view historic aircraft — from the Fox Moth to the modern King Air B200 — inside the same hangar the service still uses today. The centre's Mantle of Safety Museum showcases more than 80 years of outback medical history, complementing the region's broader mining and pastoral heritage detailed on our Mining Heritage page.
Supporting the RFDS Through Local Events
The Brushmen of the Bush famously raised over $1.6 million for the Royal Flying Doctor Service through decades of charity exhibitions, a tradition of local fundraising that continues today through events like the Mundi Mundi Bash, detailed on our Events & Festivals page. Visit the RFDS base, located at Broken Hill Airport, as part of a broader day exploring the town alongside our Line of Lode Miners' Memorial page.