Volusia County Sheriff’s Office orders two more 407 GXi
The order brings the Floridan law enforcement agency’s fleet up to five helicopters of the same type – meanwhile PAC International completed cockpit upgrades for Michigan State Police
Florida’s Volusia County Sheriff’s Office (VCSO) has placed an order for two 407 GXi helicopters for its Aviation Unit with manufacturer Bell Textron. The new aircraft will be used by VCSO’s Aviation Unit, known by their callsign ‘Air One’, and will bring the unit’s fleet of Bell 407s up to five aircraft.
The aircraft will be operated out of DeLand Municipal Airport in Orlando, where they will be used to support the Air One’s 24/7 provision of law enforcement, search and rescue (SAR), fire suppression and monitoring, and SWAT team operations.
“For more than 20 years, Air One has relied on the Bell 407 to complete life-saving missions in Volusia and other neighboring counties,” said Captain Richard Fortin, Special Services Law Enforcement Operations Division, Volusia Sheriff’s Office. “The Bell 407 GXi was Air One’s choice aircraft when looking at growing our fleet and expanding our mission efficiency.”
The 407 GXi features a Rolls-Royce 250-C47E/4 turboshaft engine with a dual digital full authority digital electronic control (FADEC) system. It has a maximum cruise speed of 246km/h, a maximum range of 624km, and a maximum useful load capacity of 1,043kg.
Another Bell 407 GXi was acquired by Nebraska-based air ambulance service LifeNet of the Heartland earlier this month.
Cockpit upgrades for Michigan State Police helicopter
Pennsylvanian aircraft overhaul specialist PAC International, a subsidiary of Metro Aviation, also recently completed cockpit upgrades to a Bell 407 G1000 NXi on behalf of Michigan State Police.
The upgrades included the replacement of the aircraft’s original analog display with a modern glass cockpit using an Aeronautical Accessories/Garmin G1000 NXi retrofit kit. PAC also installed an Aeronautical Accessories enlarged instrument panel, a Genesys Aerosystems HeliSAS autopilot system, Wulfsberg & Motorola tactical radios, a Shotover ARS700 mapping system, and Airborne displays.
“Our team is honored to work with cutting-edge organizations like Michigan State Police. We’ve supported their mission for several years, and we look forward to continuing to support them in the future,” said Marty Blough, Completions Manager for PAC.