The time has come for the closing of Sikorsky Helicopters also known as Lockheed Martin of Coatesville Plant.

Although many did not know this the Keystone Valley Fire Department has been providing staffing to the to Sikorsky Fire Department in Coatesville since 2011 when it was Pomeroy Fire Company that started the contract with Sikorsky Global Helicopters. Pomeroy Fire Company supplied staffing to Sikorsky Station # 78 supplementing its Career ARFF Firefighters. The partnership continued into the KVFD consolidation and has since be supporting Sikorksy until the end. It will be a total of eleven (11) years staffing has been assisted by our organization.

As the future progressed and the consolidation of KVFD occurred the staffing agreement continued including the agreement between Sikorsky Global Helicopter and KVFD to provide emergency supplemental staffing. The agreement was later changed when Lockheed Martin took over Sikorsky.

Of the 13 salaried staff who assisted with staffing at Station # 78, personnel had to have specialized training in Aircraft Rescue Fire Firefighting, or ARFF firefighting certifications in order to work with Sikorsky’s team at it's Coatesville Base Location.

KVFD would like to thank Sikorsky Helicopters and Lockheed Martin for the great partnership over the course of the years in which we had an awesome working relationship. As we have seen the fire department at Station # 78 come to a close, we wish the staff and personnel the best in their next endeavors. Several of the personnel were full-time and the remainder were part-time staffing from KVFD.

Everyone was great to work with and this relationship helped with staffing costs for Keystone Valley Fire Department. Although the supplemental staffing was part of it, the actual experiences and friendships will last a lifetime that were made and obtained from this joint service. Not often in many areas do you have the ability to work from a Crash truck and/or ARFF suppression vehicle. This specialized training and equipment are what is operated at all airports today ensuring safety and effective preparedness for aviation.

This is a loss to our community and also a loss of service to the Chester County region. We wish everyone a safe and happy journey.