WASHINGTON, April 2 (UPI) -- A U.S. company operating heavy-lift helicopters for wild land firefighting and other operations has received aircraft from the Swedish military.
The first three of 10 aircraft purchased by Columbia Helicopters of Oregon from the Swedish Department of Defense arrived at the Port of Tacoma in Washington state and will undergo refurbishment and modifications.
The helicopters received are Boeing Vertol 107-IIs, which Sweden were retired from service. Three more are ready to be shipped from Sweden, the company said.
A delivery date for the final four helicopters purchased -- Kawasaki Vertol 107-II models – has yet to be determined.
"All of the helicopters were very well maintained and are under 10,000 flight hours, which, given our high utilization rate, is very low time," said Columbia Helicopters' Public Relations Manager Dan Sweet. "Since the 107-II is not readily available on the international market, this presented an excellent opportunity for us to purchase more of the same type of helicopter we already operate."
Columbia Helicopters announced the purchase of the aircraft in February but no dollar amount of the deal was disclosed.
The purchase was the second by the company of retired helicopters from Sweden.
