Remote Airstrip Upgrade Program - Round 11

The Remote Airstrip Upgrade Program provides grants to enhance the safety and accessibility of aerodromes in remote and very remote areas of Australia. This will:

• improve the safety of aircraft, operators and passengers using remote and very remote airstrips
• facilitate improved delivery of essential goods and services such as food supplies, health care, community mail and passenger air services
• complement air services delivery to communities subsidised under the Australian Government’s Remote Air Services Subsidy (RASS) Scheme
• meet operational requirements of aeromedical (including the RFDS) and emergency services
• support improved access to air services for people with disability.

The maximum grant amount is $4,000,000.

The grant will be up to 50% of eligible project costs, unless:

• the applicant (you) and a third party (could include state, territory or local government or other non-government funding) are both contributing to eligible project costs, the grant amount for this opportunity may be reduced to a third of eligible project costs
• the applicant (you) meets the definition as an Indigenous Owned and/or Operated Aerodrome, the grant will be up to 100% of eligible project costs.

To be eligible you must:

• have an Australian Business Number (ABN)
• be an owner and/or operator of an existing aerodrome in a remote or very remote area in Australia as defined by the 2021 Australian Statistical Geographic Standard (ASGS) Remoteness Area. Check the remoteness of your aerodrome location using nationalmap.gov.au.

You must also be one of the following entities:

• an entity, incorporated in Australia
• an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Corporation registered under the Corporations (Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander) Act 2006 (Cth)
• an incorporated trustee on behalf of a trust
• an incorporated association
• an incorporated not for profit organisation
• an Australian local government agency or body as defined in section 14 of the grant opportunity guidelines
• an Australian state/territory government agency or body including statutory corporations that are deemed by statute to be a body that represent the government of a state/territory
• a corporate Commonwealth entity.

An eligible organisation may apply on behalf of an aerodrome owner or operator (this excludes Indigenous owned or operated aerodromes seeking 100% of funding). In this case, you will be:

• the lead applicant in a joint application
• responsible for the project including administering, reporting and acquitting project expenditure
• responsible for entering into a grant agreement with the Commonwealth.

Applications will only be accepted where you provide evidence from your board or Council (or chief executive officer (CEO) or equivalent if there is no board) that the project is supported by the applicant organisation, and that the organisation is willing to accept responsibility to complete the project and meet the costs of the project not covered by grant funding.