In her spare time Melbourne’s Kate Fraser likes to paint. When she saw how much western Queenslanders were struggling under the weight of drought she decided to do her bit to help.

She has painted Qantas’s Boeing 737-800 Retro Roo in an outback setting, and prints have so far raised $17,000 for the drought appeal.

“Originally from the country, I have been saddened by the plight of our western Queensland graziers in the worst drought since records began in 1912,” Kate said. “So I painted the Retro Roo in an outback scene to try and raise funds for the Longreach area.

“The prints of this painting really look terrific and would appeal to many plane lovers.”

Qantas took delivery of the Retro Roo, a 737 painted in the airline’s iconic ochre colour scheme of the 1970s and early 1980s, in November 2014.

There are still some 1.2m by 0.9m prints on paper on sale for $125 each, and canvas prints signed by Fraser available for $250. Anyone interested in purchasing a print can contact her at katefras@gmail.com

Kate hopes to raise another $10,000 from the prints, and to sell the original as well.

She’s no stranger to fundraising efforts, having set a world record for the number of takeoffs and landings in a single aircraft from one airstrip with fellow pilot Phil Harris in October 1999 when she was a flying instructor in general aviation, to raise money for the RSPCA.