RAAF Base Curtin
Curtin Airport
Derby, Western Australia in Australia
RAAF Base Curtin is located in Western Australia
RAAF Base Curtin
RAAF Base Curtin
Location in Western Australia
Coordinates17°34′53″S 123°49′42″E / 17.58139°S 123.82833°E / -17.58139; 123.82833
TypeMilitary airfield
Area25,000 hectares (62,000 acres)
Site information
OwnerDepartment of Defence
Operator Royal Australian Air Force;
Shire of Derby–West Kimberley
WebsiteRAAF Base Curtin
Site history
Built1983 (1983)
In use11 June 1988 (1988-06-11) – present
Garrison information
Occupants'Bare base'
Airfield information
IdentifiersIATA: DCN, ICAO: YCIN
Elevation91 metres (300 ft) AMSL
Runways
Direction Length and surface
11/29 3,049 metres (10,003 ft) Asphalt
Sources: Australian AIP and aerodrome chart[1]

RAAF Base Curtin, also sometimes RAAF Curtin[2] (IATA: DCN, ICAO: YCIN) is a joint use Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) military air base and civil airport located 19 nautical miles (35 km; 22 mi) southeast[1] of the town of Derby, Western Australia. As it is one of the RAAF's three bare bases, no RAAF units are permanently based at Curtin and it is maintained by a small caretaker staff during peacetime.

The base is named in honour of former Prime Minister John Curtin.

History

RAAF Curtin was the first new major military airfield to be built in Australia since World War II. Construction on the base began in 1983 and it was opened on 11 June 1988 by Prime Minister Bob Hawke.[3][4] The 25,000-hectare (62,000-acre)[5] base was activated twice by the RAAF between 1988 and 2013.[4] It was activated again in 2016 as part of Exercise Northern Shield.[6]

Two USAF B-2 Spirit bombers and two RAAF F-35A Lightning II fighters over RAAF Base Curtin in 2022

From the late 1990s the base operated as Curtin Immigration Reception and Processing Centre, an Australian Government immigration detention centre, which closed in September 2002.[7] However the centre was reopened in April 2010 to house around sixty Sri Lankan and Afghan asylum seekers whose applications were suspended.[8]

In 2007 direct flights recommenced between Perth and Derby (RAAF Curtin) for the first time since Ansett Australia stopped the service in 1992. However, the flights ceased in February 2016.[9]

In 2016 and 2017 the Australian Government announced that facilities at Curtin would receive a A$100 to A$200 million upgrade,[10] in addition to a range of other defence facilities in Western Australia.[11]

Climate

Climate data for Curtin RAAF Base, Western Australia
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °C (°F) 44.5
(112.1) 		44.4
(111.9) 		42.3
(108.1) 		41.5
(106.7) 		40.2
(104.4) 		36.1
(97.0) 		36.7
(98.1) 		39.1
(102.4) 		42.4
(108.3) 		44.7
(112.5) 		45.9
(114.6) 		45.7
(114.3) 		45.9
(114.6)
Mean daily maximum °C (°F) 36.3
(97.3) 		35.5
(95.9) 		36.2
(97.2) 		36.5
(97.7) 		33.3
(91.9) 		30.8
(87.4) 		31.0
(87.8) 		33.2
(91.8) 		36.6
(97.9) 		39.0
(102.2) 		39.9
(103.8) 		38.3
(100.9) 		35.6
(96.1)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F) 25.0
(77.0) 		24.6
(76.3) 		24.2
(75.6) 		22.3
(72.1) 		19.1
(66.4) 		16.7
(62.1) 		15.5
(59.9) 		15.8
(60.4) 		18.3
(64.9) 		21.8
(71.2) 		24.2
(75.6) 		25.1
(77.2) 		21.0
(69.8)
Record low °C (°F) 16.0
(60.8) 		16.0
(60.8) 		14.6
(58.3) 		11.4
(52.5) 		9.0
(48.2) 		8.5
(47.3) 		6.2
(43.2) 		6.9
(44.4) 		8.1
(46.6) 		13.2
(55.8) 		15.0
(59.0) 		16.0
(60.8) 		6.2
(43.2)
Average precipitation mm (inches) 225.0
(8.86) 		197.8
(7.79) 		148.0
(5.83) 		39.2
(1.54) 		13.7
(0.54) 		7.9
(0.31) 		8.6
(0.34) 		2.5
(0.10) 		0.1
(0.00) 		7.5
(0.30) 		21.9
(0.86) 		153.6
(6.05) 		838.2
(33.00)
Average rainy days 14.4 13.2 10.8 3.3 1.8 1.0 0.7 0.3 0.3 1.6 3.7 10.8 61.9
Source: [12]

See also

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to RAAF Base Curtin.
  1. ^ a b YCIN – Curtin (PDF). AIP En Route Supplement from Airservices Australia, effective 21 March 2024, Aeronautical Chart
  2. ^ "RAAF Curtin". Royal Australian Air Force. Australian Government. Retrieved 15 August 2017.
  3. ^ New RAAF Base Opened Australian Aviation issue 46 September 1988 page 8
  4. ^ a b Biggs, Gavin (18 July 2013). "RAAF Curtin Marks 25 Years". Air Force. p. 15. Retrieved 2 August 2023.
  5. ^ "RAAF Base Curtin, Western Australia" (PDF). Department of Defence. Australian Government. 1 October 2013. Retrieved 15 August 2017.
  6. ^ Donnelly, Shaun (22 September 2016). "Curtin Lifted Thanks to 'Outstanding' Work". Air Force. Department of Defence. p. 12. Retrieved 2 August 2023.
  7. ^ "Curtin centre closes". The World Today. Radio National. 24 September 2002. Retrieved 20 September 2009.
  8. ^ "Curtin Air Base re-opened to hold asylum seekers". The Age. 18 April 2010.
  9. ^ "Virgin axes Perth-Derby flights as Derby West Kimberley Shire considers air service alternatives". ABC. 26 February 2016. Retrieved 29 October 2018.
  10. ^ Turner, Rebecca (26 February 2016). "WA defence capabilities to get $4b upgrades under white paper plan". Australia: ABC News. Retrieved 15 August 2017.
  11. ^ Turnbull, Malcolm; Pyne, Christopher (20 February 2017). "Government invests heavily in Western Australia's future" (Press release). Australian Government. Archived from the original on 15 August 2017. Retrieved 15 August 2017.
  12. ^ "Climate Statistics for Curtin Aero". Australian Bureau of Meteorology. Retrieved 7 June 2018.
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