- April 24, 2024
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Flagler County's emergency services helicopter will be out of service until Jan. 20, as the county installs upgraded avionics technology to meet new Federal Aviation Administration requirements.
"The dashboard, where all the gauges and the altimeter are, we have to upgrade those," Flagler County Fire Chief Don Petito said. "We have to order parts, take the old out, put the new in, test it and get it FAA-certified."
The upgrade for the helicopter — which is used for emergency medical transport, law enforcement support and wildfire suppression — will cost about $85,000, he said.
In the meantime, emergency flight services will be provided by Volusia County's Air 1 helicopter, based in Deland, or by the medical response helicopters at Shands Jacksonville hospital.
In 2012, FireFlight flew 250 times, dropped 55,000 gallons of water on fires and spent more than 187 hours in the air, Petito said.
