First To Reach That Goal With AgustaWestland A109C Aircraft

AgustaWestland congratulated North Memorial Air Care on reaching and surpassing a historic milestone when their A109C model helicopter achieved 10,000 flight hours.  North Memorial is the first operator in the world to achieve 10,000 flight hours with A109C helicopters.

Speaking at a ceremony during the Air Medical Transport Conference in San Jose, California on Monday, Lou Bartolotta, Executive Vice-President Sales for North & South America said, "North Memorial has been a wonderful fixture within the U.S. aero-medical landscape for decades.  You are among the leaders in this field and deserve tremendous credit for all of the people you have helped.  We are proud to have played our part." 

Founded in 1985, North Memorial purchased the A109C model in 1991. Since that time they have flown over 5,000 patients in Minnesota and western Wisconsin. North Memorial's Air Care unit is on call 24 hours a day, seven days a week and operates from five bases.

"We are proud to have reached this milestone.  North Memorial has a tradition of remarkable and safe patient care that fundamentally relies on the operational capability and reliability of our helicopters," said Bob Rishovd, North Memorial Air Care Unit Program Manager. 

The A109C model flown by North Memorial is a "gull wing" variant.  The latest AgustaWestland light twin range includes today the AW109 Power and the Grand types. The AW109 Power is a cost effective solution for patient care across a wide geographic area. State of the art navigation for an extensive GPS approach system, fully integrated IFR operations and night vision goggles provide the highest levels of safety. The aircraft provides for rapid scene response in tight landing zones and long distance inter-hospital transport. The Grand has set new standards in the light twin market and features the highest cruise speed, full Category A/Class 1 performance and the largest cabin in the light twin class. A wide choice of modular interiors and tailored avionics solutions makes it a suitable platform for a range of roles including corporate/VIP transport, EMS, SAR, offshore transport, patrol and government agency missions.

FMI: www.northmemorial.com/aircare/