Surf Life Saving WA’s Westpac Lifesaver Rescue Helicopter Service is proudly partnered by Westpac and supported by the Government of Western Australia. 

Playing a crucial role in coastal safety and identifying emergencies, the highly-trained crews are on the lookout for people in distress as they perform regular patrols along the West Australian coastline.

This includes locating rip currents and incidents on beaches, as well as identifying risks from marine life, including sharks. The service is also regularly tasked with assisting Water Police and other agencies in search and rescue activity.

Westpac Lifesaver Rescue Helicopter Service statistics for the 2023/24 season

Shark Sightings

437 Metro
548 South West


985 SIGHTINGS

Patrol Hours

510 Metro
488 South West


998 HOURS

Number of Patrols

455 Metro
286 South West


741 PATROLS

Number of people cleared

4,884 Metro
1,266 South West


6,150 PEOPLE

SLSWA operates two helicopters – the Perth Metropolitan service, and the South West service.

The Perth service is based at Rous Head in Fremantle, performing coastal surveillance patrols and emergency response missions throughout the greater Perth metropolitan area; from Mandurah in the south to Yanchep in the north and around Rottnest Island. Our Perth based service is operational from September to April each year.

The South West service, based out of the Busselton Margaret River Airport, operates from September to April each year with a focus on providing coastal surveillance patrols on weekends and holidays (public and school) over popular coastal destinations between Bunbury and Hamelin Bay.

The Westpac Lifesaver Rescue Helicopter Service in WA has been operating from Fremantle since 2008 and Busselton since 2013 and is proudly supported by the Government of Western Australia and partnered by Westpac, who in 2017 renewed their partnership with Surf Life Saving for a further 5 years, taking the national partnership to 49 years – one of the longest community partnerships in Australia!

Not sure what to do if our helicopter sounds its siren while you are in the water?

Visit our Coastal Safety page for more information.