The Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) is adding four Bell aircraft, including two Bell 429 and the first two IFR-configured Bell 407GXi aircraft, to its fleet, bringing its total to six Bell machines.

TVA is a corporate agency of the United States that provides electricity for business customers and local power companies serving 10 million people in parts of seven southeastern states. TVA provides flood control, navigation and land management for the Tennessee River system and assists local power companies and state and local governments with economic development and job creation.

“Helicopters are an investment that help us to improve safety and overall operational efficiency with minimal impact to the environment,” says David Hill, TVA general manager of aviation services. “As the nation's largest public power provider, with over 16,000 miles of transmission lines, helicopters help us to deliver low-cost, cleaner energy with 99.999 percent reliability to nearly 10 million people in the Tennessee Valley.”

Bell's North America MD Doug Schoen adds: “We have been proud providers to Tennessee Valley Authority for more than 20 years now and we're honoured that it continues to choose aircraft to support its mission. Adding the Bell 407GXi will allow TVA to cost-effectively operate a single-engine IFR aircraft to support its region.”

TVA's aviation unit has been operating aircraft since the 1930s and currently flies two Bell 407s, a Bell 429 and a Bell 206L4, as well as two Cessna Citation XLS+ jets manufactured by sister company, Textron Aviation.

The FAA announced an IFR STC for the Bell 407GXi in August 2019.