There is no threat to the air ambulance helicopter service based at the Warrnambool Airport, according to member for South West Coast Roma Britnell.
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Following comments made at a Moyne Shire Council meeting, Ms Britnell spoke with Ambulance Victoria representatives on Wednesday in an effort to relive community anxieties.
"I have been assured that there is no need for alarm - Ambulance Victoria is not aware of any threats to its operations at Warrnambool and is operating as normal," Ms Britnell said.
"The helicopter is based in the south-west following a hard fought campaign led by the community. In the 10 years it has been servicing our community it has flown over 2000 missions and saved countless lives.
"The community has a sense of ownership over the helicopter and the comments made have caused a great deal of anxiety. The community can be assured Ambulance Victoria is not aware of threats to its operations."
Ms Britnell said while aviation is the responsibility of the federal government, she would work with responsible agencies to ensure any upgrades required into the future were delivered.
"Airports like Warrnambool are important for the region and provide a vital service. If upgrades are required to meet new safety standards, then they must be completed and the community has my word I will work to ensure they are completed," she said.
On Wednesday The Standard reported Warrnambool could be in danger of losing its air ambulance services if the airport it calls home is not upgraded to meet new safety guidelines.
The city council has a two-and-a-half-year window to transition the Yarpturk facility from a registered airport to a certified airport.
But just what needs to be done, how much it will cost and who will pay for it remains unclear.
The city council was contacted for comment.
Warrnambool will have to upgrade its airport to keep the air ambulances on site.
Moyne Shire councillors on Tuesday voted to support the airport reference group in transitioning, after Cr Jim Doukas put forward a notice of motion which warned if there was a delay in moving to a certified airport it would be "extremely expensive".
And if the airport was not certified, it could mean there would be a "severe curtailment or relocation of air ambulance fixed wing services and HEMS4 services".
Commercial operations in and out of Warrnambool could also be "severely curtailed", tourist flights and training flights cut back and offshore helicopter operations would have to be relocated elsewhere.
Cr Doukas' motion also warned that the refuelling installation would also be put in jeopardy which would further reduce activity at the airport.
Failure to move to a certified airport also raised safety issues, the motion says, because there would be no runway inspections and no area navigation used for instrument approach in bad weather and at night time.
The new rules, which were announced late last year by the Civil Aviation Safety Authority, aim to make all airports safer.
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