MD Helicopters, Inc. (MDHI), a leading manufacturer of commercial and military helicopters, has announced that the Kansas City Board of Police Commissioners has approved the purchase of three MD 500E helicopters for use by the Police Patrol Support Unit for airborne law enforcement. The selection of MD Helicopters was made after a six month RFP process, which included proposal review and product demonstration by four vendors.

The Kansas City Police Department was one of the first law enforcement agencies to implement the concept of airborne helicopter patrol in the early 1970s using the Hughes 300 helicopter. The decision to upgrade the fleet to a state-of-the-art helicopter was made after years of successful operation using the OH-6 military surplus aircraft. The speed, agility, performance, low acquisition and operating cost of the MD 500E made it the aircraft of choice for the mission. The new aircraft will include an infrared camera, video downlink, NVG compatibility, high powered searchlight and a mapping system from selected vendors.

MD Helicopters is proud of the breadth of its law enforcement customer base. Its history and legacy is built upon serving municipal and military markets. We are so pleased that the Kansas City Police Department has again chosen the MD aircraft as the best value proposition to meet its mission, said Lynn Tilton, CEO of MDHI.

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