Former Federal Liberal Party leader Peter Dutton has been appointed to the Board of LifeFlight Commercial (LFC) as a non-executive director.
Mr Dutton brings a wealth of experience across government, business and philanthropy.
He served for 23 years in Parliament in a range of roles including Minister for Defence, Minister for Immigration and Border Protection, Minister for Health and Sport, and as the inaugural Minister for Home Affairs.
His achievements include as Health Minister establishing the $20 billion Medical Research Future Fund to support long-term medical research and creating the Australian Centre to Counter Child Exploitation to protect children from online harm and sexual abuse.
Before entering politics Mr Dutton developed, owned and operated multiple early day care centres alongside investing in the property sector.
Mr Dutton said he was looking forward to adding his expertise to the Board at a time of strong growth across the organisation.
“Being based in Queensland, I’ve had plenty of time to observe LifeFlight’s evolution over the past five decades into a major force in the aeromedical sector,” Mr Dutton said.
“I’ve also been privileged as a former Minister for Defence and Minister for Home Affairs to see what LifeFlight was able to bring on its deployments for the Australian Defence Force and Australian Border Force.
“LifeFlight is making great strides across Australia and internationally, which makes it an exciting time to become part of the Board.”
LifeFlight Commercial was launched in 2018 to strengthen LifeFlight’s community rescue helicopter service by channeling funds from the entity into LifeFlight’s core mission of saving lives.
Deployments in addition to the Australian Defence Force and Australian Border Force have supported the New South Wales State Emergency Service and the Australian Maritime Safety Authority.
In 2025 LifeFlight announced a $250 million commercial partnership with Leonardo, including state-of-the-art training and engineering facilities in Queensland.
LifeFlight’s StarFlight joint venture with Linfox also recently commenced 24/7 aeromedical operations in Tasmania after being awarded the emergency air services contract by the Tasmanian Government.
LifeFlight Commercial Chair John Lewis welcomed Mr Dutton and said he would be an invaluable source of knowledge and insight for the Board.
“Peter Dutton has had a remarkable career in government and business, and his appointment strengthens the board immeasurably,” Mr Lewis said.
“We’re looking forward to his contributions as we seek to grow commercial operations over the next decade.”
Mr Dutton joins after Stewart Morland stood down as a non-executive director.
He joins Mr Lewis (chair), Hon. Jim Elder (non-executive director), Katarina Carroll (non-executive director) and Ashley van de Velde OAM (managing director – executive) on the Board.
His appointment is effective March 1.
