New Milestone Celebrated in Aircraft’s Legacy
Farnborough International Airshow (July 23, 2024) – Bell Textron Inc., a Textron Inc. (NYSE:TXT) company, announced today at Farnborough 2024 the delivery of the 500th Bell 429 aircraft. The aircraft was delivered to Latin-America based operator, Mendes Group, and will be used for corporate transportation in Brazil.
“Bell is proud to celebrate the 500th delivery to Group Mendes with their fourth Bell 429,” said John Ramos, managing director, Latin America. “The Bell 429 platform holds a remarkable performance reputation with a growing global footprint and will greatly add to Mendes Group’s capabilities.”
The Bell 429 is one of the most advanced light twin helicopters in its class. It delivers exceptional speed, range and hover performance, and offers operators a state-of-the-art single pilot IFR helicopter with top user-rated in-service support. The powerful and reliable Bell 429 serves the full spectrum of segments including air medical, public safety, oil & gas, utility, and corporate.
Recently, the global Bell 429 has surpassed 735,000 total fleet hours, including a Guiness Book world-record breaking global circumnavigation performed by W.R. “Bob” Dengler and Steven Dengler in 2017.
“The 500th delivery of the Bell 429 marks a significant, historic achievement for the platform and serves as a testament to the value it provides our global customer base,” said Danny Maldonado. Chief Commercial Officer, Bell. “The Bell 429 fleet continues to grow across all mission segments, specifically for corporate travel, public safety and emergency medical transportation. Throughout the aircraft’s history, Bell has introduced numerous platform enhancements to exceed mission requirements.”
The Bell 429 is powered by two Pratt & Whitney Canada PW207D1/D2 engines that provide customers with rugged dependability and excellent operating economics. The aircraft delivers exceptional flight performance and a fully integrated glass cockpit, advanced drive system and best-in-class SBAS navigation and Instrument Flight Rules (IFR) capability. It is the first helicopter certified through the MSG-3 process, resulting in reduced maintenance costs for operators. The Bell 429 also features a spacious cabin and extra-large 60-inch side doors, as well as IFR capability, certified for single or dual pilot operations.
The aircraft acceptance took place at the Bell Textron Canada Ltd. facility in Mirabel, Quebec where Bell’s highly skilled employees are responsible for Bell’s current commercial production line, including the Bell 505, Bell 407GXi, Bell 429 and SUBARU Bell 412EPX. To date, the company has built and delivered more than 5,800 commercial helicopters.
ABOUT BELL
Thinking above and beyond is what we do. For more than 80 years, we’ve been reimagining the experience of flight – and where it can take us.
We are pioneers. We were the first to break the sound barrier and to certify a commercial helicopter. We were aboard NASA’s first lunar mission and brought advancedtiltrotor systems to market. Today, we’re defining the future of on-demand mobility.
Headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas – as a wholly-owned subsidiary of Textron Inc., – we have strategic locations around the globe. And with nearly one quarter of ourworkforce having served, helping our military achieve their missions is a passion of ours.
Above all, our breakthrough innovations deliver exceptional experiences to our customers. Efficiently. Reliably. And always, with safety at the forefront.
ABOUT TEXTRON INC.
Textron Inc. is a multi-industry company that leverages its global network of aircraft, defense, industrial and finance businesses to provide customers with innovativesolutions and services. Textron is known around the world for its powerful brands such as Bell, Cessna, Beechcraft, Pipistrel, Jacobsen, Kautex, Lycoming, E-Z-GO, ArcticCat and Textron Systems. For more information, visit: www.textron.com.