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RAAF Base Edinburgh Facts

• RAAF Base Edinburgh is located in South Australia, 25 km north of Adelaide.
   
• The Base was named in honour of the Duke of Edinburgh, who officially opened it in 1954.
   
• The Base began operations in January 1955 with just 7 officers and 8 airmen.
   
• There are now about 3,000 people working at the Base, but not all of them are in the Air Force. Some are in the Navy and Army, whilst others are civilians who are not required to wear uniforms.
   
• The Base has a 2,560 metre north/south sealed (bitumen) runway. It also has a smaller grass landing strip for aircraft that are able to land on rough, unsealed runways.
   
• The Base is primarily the home of No. 92 Wing's AP-3C Orion maritime patrol aircraft.
   
• The AP-3C Orion began as a passenger aircraft called the Electra, which first flew in 1957. It was later converted for military use in 1962.
  
• The Orion is an extremely versatile aircraft capable of many roles including maritime surveillance, anti-submarine and anti-ship warfare, naval fleet support, fisheries patrol, and survivor search and supply.
   
• The Orion has a maximum speed of 750 km/h and can stay in the air for up to 15 hours without refuelling. The power of each of its four Allison turboprop engines is an enormous 4,600 horsepower. You would need approximately 20 six-cylinder family cars to generate the same amount of horsepower as a single Orion engine!
   
• The Institute of Aviation Medicine is located a RAAF Base Edinburgh. The Institute's role is to conduct training, research and development into how Australian Defence Force aircrew can better meet the challenges of flight.
  
• No. 1 Airfield Defence Squadron is located at RAAF Base Edinburgh. The Squadron's motto is, 'First to Defend' and it is their responsibility to defend the airbase.
   
• Military working dogs assist the Air Defence Guards of No. 1 Squadron to keep RAAF Base Edinburgh safe and secure. The two breeds of dog currently used are the German Shepherd and the Belgian Shepherd Malinois. The motto of the Air Defence Guards is, 'Protect the Force'.
  
• The 7th Battalion Royal Australian Regiment will relocate from Darwin to the Edinburgh Defence Precinct, of which RAAF Base Edinburgh is an important part, in early 2011.