The first concrete was poured at the new base this week.

The bobcats and bulldozers moved in to the construction site last month with a completion date set for May next year.

The $2 million base will include crew sleeping quarters, crew and medical staff offices, operations area and a proposed flight simulator.

The move to build the complex has been on the cards since the service moved to Tamworth in 2000, with the organisation putting money aside for the community resource.