North Lyon Fire and Battle Born Medevac have launched a medical helicopter base at North Lyon Fire Station 61 in Fernley, a strategic partnership aimed at drastically reducing critical care transport times along the Interstate 80 corridor.
The base will be the third for Battle Born Medevac, which is headquartered in Yerington and has helicopters stationed at South Lyon Medical Center and East Fork Fire Protection District Station 12 in Carson City. The company also has a vehicle stationed in Lovelock that operates in partnership with Pershing General Hospital and is staffed by a critical care paramedic who initiates advanced treatments until transport units arrive.
The partnership between North Lyon Fire and Battle Born Medevac has been several months in the making, and both parties say it will reduce transport times for patients.
North Lyon Fire Chief Brian Bunn announced at the North Lyon County Fire Protection District Board of Directors meeting March 30 that the district was working on a memorandum of understanding with Battle Born Medevac to house a transport helicopter. The fire board approved the MOU at its June 24 meeting.
Under the agreement, Battle Born Medevac CEO Joey Loehner said the company will have a pilot, nurse and paramedic stationed at North Lyon Fire Station 61 on Main Street. Battle Born Medevac will also rent a property near the station for a mechanic. The MOU includes housing for Battle Born Medevac staff in three unused bedrooms at the fire station.
“We are flying here a lot obviously, but we’re coming from Yerington, so with requests, dispatch, launch and flight time it’s 27, 28 minutes average response time total, start to finish, to land here, versus now we’ll be physically here,” Loehner said at the June 24 meeting.
Fernley’s central location allows the aircraft to respond quickly throughout Lyon, Churchill, Storey, Pershing and eastern Washoe counties while also improving coverage for Pyramid Lake, Gerlach, Lovelock and surrounding areas. Because the helicopter is a regional asset, there will be times when it will be unavailable to transport patients from Fernley if it is committed to another air medical transport.
“The way I sum it up is, we’ve just put a mutual aid partner that normally we have to wait 20 minutes for, in our backyard when they’re here, so that’s a huge benefit to our taxpayers when needed for flights,” Bunn said.
North Lyon Fire retains exclusive rights to EMS response within the district.
“They will not be freelance launching without direction of dispatch, which our (battalion chiefs) manage,” Bunn added.
In May 2025, Battle Born Medevac announced a sponsorship under which SB Energy fully funded a membership for every resident of Lyon and Mineral counties. Any medically necessary air transport by Battle Born Medevac is fully covered with no out-of-pocket cost to the patient through May 31, 2029. The agreement does not apply to any other medical transport service.
In a statement, North Lyon Fire said the partnership represents a significant investment in emergency medical services for Fernley, Lyon County and neighboring rural communities by positioning a critical care air ambulance along the Interstate 80 corridor.
“Providing the highest level of emergency medical care to our community requires strong partnerships,” Bunn said. “By working alongside Battle Born Medevac, we are improving access to lifesaving resources, reducing response times and ensuring critically ill and injured patients have faster access to definitive medical care.”
The helicopter is equipped to provide advanced critical care interventions, specialized equipment and whole blood products, capabilities that are generally unavailable through traditional ground ambulance transport. Average flight time from Fernley to Reno is about 12 minutes, providing significant time savings when roadway congestion delays ground transportation of critical patients.
“Both agencies view this as a true partnership,” Loehner said. “Being co-located at Station 61 allows us to train together more frequently, strengthen relationships between our crews and ultimately provide even better service to the communities we protect.”
In addition to emergency response, the organizations plan to conduct joint training, coordinated community outreach and future collaboration aimed at strengthening emergency medical services across the region.
“Our long-term goal is ensuring stable and fast access to health care along the I-80 corridor while continuing to grow together as organizations,” Loehner said. “This partnership represents the beginning of an exciting future for emergency medical care in Northern Nevada.”
At the April 24 meeting, Bunn said the helipad is artificial turf rather than concrete because a concrete pad would have required the district to conduct a noise study and apply for rezoning. He said the city allowed the district to operate the artificial turf pad under a special use permit.
In its statement, the fire district thanked Fernley City Councilman Albert Torres, the City of Fernley, Sanchez Landscape LLC and American Ready Mix for helping make the helipad possible.
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