Aircraft tours Nepal while demonstrating superior performance around Mount Everest

Kathmandu, Nepal (November 17, 2015) – Bell Helicopter, a Textron Inc. (NYSE: TXT) company, announced the successful demonstration tour of the new Bell 407GXP throughout Nepal.

Images of the demo tour can be found here.

“Bell Helicopter demonstrated the heightened capability and customer-driven enhancements of the popular Bell 407 platform during the tour through Nepal,” said Sameer A. Rehman, managing director, Asia Pacific. “Throughout the demo tour, our customers praised the performance capabilities of the Bell 407GXP – noting its smooth ride, maneuverability, and increased performance at high altitudes. Proving this incredible helicopter’s capability in the Himalayan mountain range was a true testament to the Bell 407GXP’s game-changing performance in the highest terrain on the planet.”

Bell Helicopter introduced the latest variant of the popular Bell 407 platform at Heli-Expo 2015 in March, with great customer interest. The new aircraft incorporates the reliability and advanced technology of the Bell 407GX platform, and introduces performance enhancements, payload increase and pilot workload reduction.

Bell Helicopter’s pilot began demonstration flights in Kathmandu, Nepal and into Mount Everest Base Camp area. While there, the Bell 407GXP successfully climbed to an altitude of 20,000 feet. The demonstration flight was executed from Lukla airfield, and demonstrated several landings from 13,500 to 19,600 ft. near the Everest Base Camp.

“I was incredibly pleased with the performance of the aircraft and to demonstrate the increased power, performance and economics of the new M250 Rolls-Royce engine, producing 862 horsepower,” said Bell Helicopter demonstration pilot Will Williamson. “The aircraft performed extremely well, and I was able to demonstrate the aircraft’s ability to land at base camp and pick up passengers for potential recoveries back down the mountain.”

Derived from the Bell 407GX platform, the Bell 407GXP has an additional 50 lbs (22.5 kg) of payload capability, coupled with the new M250 Rolls-Royce engine that improves performance and fuel efficiency delivering class leading hot and high performance. The aircraft is also equipped with new avionics features such as a hover performance calculator improvement, as well as a transmission TBO extension of +500 hours that is expected to lower maintenance costs.

Press Contact:

LINDSEY VIOTTO 
+1 817-280-3100 
[email protected]
Online Media Kit
Facebook
Twitter
YouTube

Bell Helicopter, a wholly owned subsidiary of Textron Inc., is an industry-leading producer of commercial and military, manned and unmanned vertical-lift aircraft and the pioneer of the revolutionary tiltrotor aircraft. Globally recognized for world-class customer service, innovation and superior quality, Bell's global workforce serves customers flying Bell aircraft in more than 120 countries.

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 Helicopter, Cessna, Beechcraft, Hawker, Jacobsen, Kautex, Lycoming, E-Z-GO, Greenlee, Textron Systems and TRU Simulation + Training. For more information, visit www.textron.com.

Certain statements in this press release are forward-looking statements which may project revenues or describe strategies, goals, outlook or other non-historical matters; these statements speak only as of the date on which they are made, and we undertake no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements. These statements are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties, and other factors that may cause our actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements.