HelicopterBuyer Inc. has announced it has sold the 1981 Bell 412, S/N: 33019, R/N: VH-XCN exclusively on behalf of CareFlight Group from Brisbane, Australia. The emergency medical service (EMS) configured helicopter will be reconfigured to utility for external load and rescue work in a high mountain environment in Europe with new owner Heli-Austria from St. Johann im Pongau, Austria.
“We believe the sale of the Bell 412 is a part of a trend we have been seeing as utility operators are looking for medium helicopter alternatives that offer multi-role capability, increased speed, smoother ride, greater external load capability, and better long-term OEM [original equipment manufacturer] support,” said Mark V. Clancy, president. “HelicopterBuyer specializes, in large part, in the Bell 412s and we expect to see this trend continue.
“Our buyer has developed creative ways to reduce empty weight and improve lift capacity; increase high/hot performance with the installation of the BLR FastFin and Strake; and improve safety with one-engine inoperative performance with the installation of PT6T-3DF engines.”
Heli-Austria, developed the PT6T-3DF supplemental type certificate (STC) installation for the early model “classic” Bell 412s.
“The improvements Heli-Austria has made to lighten the empty weight with strong PT6T-3DF engine margins allow our Bell 412 to outperform the Bell 212 and 205A-1 in many high altitude environments and circumstances,” said Roy Knaus, president of Heli-Austria.
“The helicopter acquisition costs of early model Bell 412s has dropped to a level where they now compete with Bell 212s and 205A-1s and the direct maintenance costs differences have been reduced. The principal reasons are that the Honeywell T53 engine overhaul costs have escalated substantially the last few years, there have been appreciable Bell 212 and 205A-1 legacy spare parts price increases, and we have found it is easier to finance 80s to 90s helicopters more easily than a 60s and 70s model.
“These are the primary reasons we have moved to the Bell 412, developed the PT6T-3DF STC, and are continuing our efforts to better support our utility and rescue customers.”
HelicopterBuyer Inc. is a global helicopter broker and dealer of Bell, Airbus, and Finmeccanica helicopters with 16 years of experience offering buyers and sellers unique value-driven acquisition and sales solutions. It offers helicopter brokerage, acquisitions, coordinate reconfigurations and MRO, and arrange international post-sale relocations for utility, EMS, offshore, government, and corporate helicopter operators.
