Story ID: 128Jan18
Bell Canada Delivers 5,000th Civil Helicopter
By: Mark Huber
Caption: The milestone Bell 407GXP was handed over to China's Shaanxi Helicopter Co., which placed an order for 100 Bell 407GXPs in January.
Word Count: 215

Bell Helicopter celebrated the delivery of its 5,000th helicopter—a 407GXP—from its Mirabel, Quebec facility on December 12. The Textron-owned helicopter manufacturer was founded in 1935 and established its Mirabel facility in 1986. It is the assembly and delivery site of the majority of Bell's commercial helicopters, including the 505, 429, 412EPI, and 407GXP.

The milestone helicopter was handed over to China's Shaanxi Helicopter Co. (SHC), which placed an order for 100 Bell 407GXPs in January 2017. Bell launched the 407GXP in 2015 as an upgrade to the company's line of Model 407 singles. It features an additional 50 pounds of payload coupled to a new Rolls-Royce M250 engine that improves efficiency and performance, including high/hot operations, and extends TBO intervals. More than 1,400 Bell 407s are currently operating worldwide.

Bell Helicopter Textron Canada president Cynthia Garneau said the delivery is “an incredible milestone for Bell Helicopter and a testament to the talent and dedication of everyone here at Mirabel and across the company. We are confident this new 407GXP will live up to the high performance that SHC expects from the aircraft, and we look forward to working with SHC to bring this aircraft into service in China and ensure the smooth delivery of the rest of the 407s on order.”

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