Bell Helicopter, a Textron Inc. (NYSE: TXT) company, today announced that its Bell Helicopter Training Academy has received European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) Training Approval for Bell’s newest product, the 429.

The Bell Training Academy is approved to provide Bell 429 Maintenance Training Courses—Part 66 B1.3 (Maintenance Course) and B2 (combination of Electrical Maintenance and Avionics/AFCS Maintenance Courses).

“In addition to being a significant step forward in support of this new airframe, adding courses and capabilities to our Part 147 Maintenance Training Organization is needed for our continued success in the European market,” said Trey Wade, director of the academy.

Tom Hyde, quality manager for the academy, stated, “As an EASA Part 147 Maintenance Training Organization, we can support our customers by providing required EASA-approved maintenance type training on the Bell 429. This latest approval, along with our previous EASA Bell 427 training approval and many Transport Canada maintenance course approvals, enhances our ability to deliver total training solutions to our customers’ worldwide.”

Located at Fort Worth Alliance Airport, the academy takes pride in delivering the finest helicopter training in the world with highly skilled professional pilot and technical instructors. Their training incorporates the latest technological advancements into its aviation training programs and continues to invest in the development of new, industry-leading initiatives to promote helicopter safety.

Recent improvements in Bell’s maintenance training programs include the installation of electronic classrooms, upgrades to composite maintenance trainers, and non-destructive inspection training for maintenance technicians.

The Academy provides comprehensive training courses on Bell products. For a complete schedule of all courses, call 1-800-368-2355, visit www.bellhelicopter.com/en/training or contact the Bell Helicopter Training Academy Administration directly at BTAAdmin@bellhelicopter.textron.com. For information concerning European Aviation Safety Agency and Transport Canada maintenance training course approvals, please contact Tom Hyde at thyde@bellhelicopter.textron.com.

About the Bell Training Academy

For more than 60 years, the Bell Helicopter Training Academy has provided world class, FAA-certified training at our facility in Fort Worth and at customer locations around the world. We have trained more than 100,000 customers representing over 120 countries and every type of helicopter operation.

About Bell Helicopter

Bell Helicopter, a wholly owned subsidiary of Textron Inc., is an industry-leading producer of commercial and military, manned and unmanned vertical lift aircraft and the pioneer of the revolutionary tiltrotor aircraft. Globally recognized for world-class customer service, innovation and superior quality, Bell’s global workforce serves customers flying Bell aircraft in more than 120 countries.

About Textron Inc.

Textron Inc. is a multi-industry company that leverages its global network of aircraft, defense, industrial and finance businesses to provide customers with innovative solutions and services. Textron is known around the world for its powerful brands such as Bell Helicopter, Cessna Aircraft Company, Jacobsen, Kautex, Lycoming, E-Z-GO, Greenlee, and Textron Systems. More information is available at www.textron.com.