Mountain Air Helicopters will take delivery of its new Eurocopter AS350B3e helicopter on Friday following the Heli-Expo 2013 trade show, where the aircraft used by American Eurocopter to demonstrate the capabilities of the latest in the AS350 AStar line of light single-engine helicopters.

Mountain Air, based in Los Lunas, N.M., operates five earlier AStar models. Owner and President Dwight Jones and his wife, Marina, Vice President of Mountain Air, will fly the helicopter home from Las Vegas.

The new helicopter will be put to work quickly, said Jones, whose company performs utility helicopter work all over the United States. “We have helicopters and we will travel to where the work is,” said Jones.

Mountain Air’s work ranges from firefighting missions to utility tower construction jobs to transporting oil and gas exploration crews and equipment. The AS350 helicopters are well suited for the company’s work, Jones said.

“For a light helicopter they’re very, very versatile,” said Jones. “They’re smooth, they’re fast and they have great lift capability.” The AS350B3e hot and high capability is a great asset to working in the mountainous western U.S.

The new AS350B3e is being acquired by Mountain Air on a lease-purchase basis through NS Air Leasing LLC, the fifth helicopter deal between the two companies, Jones said. NS Air Leasing provides unique helicopter leasing solutions to operators across North America and has placed more than a dozen helicopters on leases over the past two years.

Panterra Heli Support Ltd of Beamsville, ON, Canada custom completed the Mountain Air AS350B3e in house. The work included the exterior finish, all equipment, design of the avionics integration, fabrication of the wiring harness and all certification processes.

The A350B3e is the latest update to Eurocopter’s top-selling single engine aircraft. It is equipped with a new Turbomeca Arriel 2D engine with a dual digital engine control system. This modern engine offers increased reliability and decreased maintenance costs and is fitted with an Engine Data Recorder. The AS350 B3e cockpit, with its dual LCD-screen Vehicle and Engine Multifunction Display (VEMD), allows the pilot to check at a glance key aircraft performance parameters, reducing pilot workload and enhancing safety.

About American Eurocopter

American Eurocopter is the U.S. affiliate of Eurocopter, the largest helicopter manufacturer in the world, and a subsidiary of EADS North America Holdings, the North American operations of EADS, a world leader in aerospace, defense and related services. American Eurocopter is a helicopter manufacturer and markets, sells and supports the broadest range of civil and para-public helicopters offered by any manufacturer. The product line represents the most cost-effective, technologically-advanced helicopters, ranging from light single to heavy twin aircraft, serving all markets and missions. American Eurocopter’s headquarters and main facility are in Grand Prairie, with a large manufacturing and production facility in Columbus, Miss.