Our Journey




Queensland Aerospace College (QAC) had its birth in 1990, when foundation owners and Directors, Harry and Dawn McDougall, conducted an Australian Federal Government funded program for the training of aircraft maintenance engineers in a Joint Venture with the Central Queensland University.

This program was our beginnings as an Aviation College and our springboard to success.  QAC will always acknowledge the important role these organisations had in our birth and success as was the early roles played by the Rockhampton City Council in providing QAC with premises for its fledgling operations at Rockhampton Airport and the Australian Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) in providing encouragement and support for the start-up operations. 

As foundation owners, we acknowledge the important contribution that our family has made over the many years of operations and in particular our children who have contributed significantly to the success of QAC.

It goes without saying that there would not be a QAC if not for our customers and our loyal staff, past and present, and those who were part of the 1990 inaugral training program will always have a place in QAC’s history.

In 1992 QAC became a “Government Approved Training Organisation” followed soon thereafter with “Registered Training Organisation” status from the Queensland Government.  QAC became only the second organisation in Queensland to receive this approval and in Australia at the time was the only organisation, public or private, conducting full-time aircraft maintenance engineer training.  A niche was found and QAC filled it and is continuing to this day to provide innovative and “Best Practice” training.

In January 1993, QAC commenced flying operations, both air charter and flight training and was also registered with the Australian Government as a CRICOS Provider for the intake of international Students.  Since then Queensland Aerospace has gone from strength to strength.

In 1998 when apprenticeship training was opened to private enterprise and no longer only the domain of the public system QAC became the first private organisation in any industry in Australia to receive apprenticeship training approval, a unique achievement reflecting our most significant values.

QAC acknowledges the important role in our journey that our customers have played in our successes.  Our customers are our lifeblood, without them we would be nothing.  Throughout our long and at times arduous journey, hundreds, if not thousands of customers from both Australia and overseas have walked the corridors of the College.  Without a doubt all have been successful and gone on to satisfying and rewarding aviation careers either here in Australia or internationally.

Today, QAC continues its journey of high achievements with training approvals from both the Australian Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) and European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) on some of the most complex aircraft in the World today such as the Airbus A350, Boeing 777 and Boeing 787, to the more simpler Bombardier Dash 8 and Hawker Beechcraft King Air.