Life Flight Network Grows Air Ambulance Fleet
Long-standing Bell Operator Adds two Bell 407GXi helicopters and plans to add a Bell 429 by end of year
Fort Worth, TX (Oct. 31, 2023) – Bell Textron Inc., a Textron Inc. (NYSE:TXT) company, announced today that Life Flight Network, the largest not-for-profit air medical program in the country, has added two additional Bell 407GXi helicopters and plans to accept delivery of an additional Bell 429 in December. With 22 Bell aircraft, Life Flight Network is the largest air medical operator of Bell helicopters in the Pacific Northwest and Intermountain West.
“This year, Life Flight Network celebrates 45 years of operations, and Bell is honored to support their incredible history of providing critical care transport,” said Lane Evans, director, North America Sales. “By expanding Life Flight Network’s air ambulance fleet with two 407GXis and a Bell 429, Life Flight Network will continue to have the latest Bell aircraft to provide life-saving missions when minutes matter.”
Life Flight Network will operate five Bell 429s and 27 Bell 407GX-series helicopters to provide emergency medical transport. Since 1978, Life Flight Network has grown to 29 rotor-wing bases, 10 fixed-wing bases, and two neonatal and pediatric bases across Oregon, Washington, Idaho, and Montana, and is the largest air medical operator in the region. Life Flight Network continues to lead the air ambulance industry in providing ICU-level care to patients in need of emergency medical transport, supporting local hospitals and EMS to bring the highest quality emergency care to the communities and patients who need it most.
“For over four decades, we have put our trust in Bell to provide aircraft with the speed, reliability, and safety features necessary to carry out our mission of saving lives with industry leading care and transport,” said Michael Weimer, chief operating officer at Life Flight Network. “The new Bell 407GXi and Bell 429 are no exception, delivering the cabin space and speed our crews require to provide life-saving medical care to our patients.”
Bell proves its mature production and sustainment support capability with more than 1,600 Bell 407s globally, logging six million flight hours across the fleet and actively performing flight training as well as military and para-public missions. The 407GXi’s Garmin G1000H™ NXi Flight Deck enhances situational awareness and reduces pilot workload by delivering easy-to-read information at a glance. The Bell 407GXi’s new IFR capability will allow all-weather operations while continuing to provide multi-mission capability safely, reliably, and effectively.
The Bell 429 is one of the most advanced light twin helicopters ever developed. 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, law enforcement, oil & gas, utility, and corporate.
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 advanced tiltrotor 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 our workforce 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 innovative solutions and services. Textron is known around the world for its powerful brands such as Bell, Cessna, Beechcraft, Pipistrel, Jacobsen, Kautex, Lycoming, E-Z-GO, Arctic Cat and Textron Systems. For more information, visit: www.textron.com.
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