A STAR Flight crew member is lowered on a hoist from one of Travis County’s Leonardo AW169 helicopters. (Courtesy Travis County STAR Flight)
Travis County commissioners voted Nov. 10 to approve a contract of up to $67.8 million for three new rescue helicopters, about $7.8 million more than the county had planned, according to county documents.
The contract with Bell Textron covers three Subaru Bell 412EPX helicopters, with the option of a fourth. The first is due by the end of 2027, and the other two will follow at 60-day intervals.
Why it matters
Shock Trauma Air Rescue, or STAR Flight, is the county's emergency aviation program. It provides air ambulance service, search and rescue, hoist rescue, aerial firefighting and law enforcement support.
No other public program in the region does all of those jobs, said Charles Brotherton, Travis County executive for emergency services.
Austin-Travis County EMS and fire crews bring a stretcher to a STAR Flight helicopter at an emergency scene. (Courtesy Travis County STAR Flight)
The program owns three helicopters so it can reliably keep two flying. But its current Leonardo AW169s have two available only about 75% of the time, said Craig Hilzendager, county director of aviation operations for STAR Flight. Replacement parts often come from Europe and take so long to arrive that the program uses the third helicopter for parts, he said.
Maintaining the fleet costs about $2.5 million a year through extended warranty programs. Without those programs, maintenance would have cost more than $10 million in fiscal 2025, Hilzendager said.
The cost
The helicopters cost about $21.8 million to $21.9 million each, and spare parts, tools and customization add about $2.3 million, according to county documents.
The county had set aside $60 million in debt it plans to issue in spring 2027. Earlier Nov. 10, commissioners added about $7.8 million to that debt, said Michelle Surka, assistant budget director in the county’s Planning and Budget Office. The county will pay from its reserves until then.
The price could come down once the helicopters’ equipment is set, but it will not go higher, county staff said. The total does not include operating costs.
What’s next
The county plans to hire a broker to sell the AW169s once the new helicopters are in service, said Brotherton, who oversaw the county’s 2019 sale of its EC145 fleet. Money from the sale is not included in the $67.8 million total.
