A New York investment bank has signed an agreement to acquire the second-largest U.S. helicopter EMS company. Funds managed by KKR have acquired Air Medical Group Holdings (AMGH) of Lewisville, Texas. Terms of the deal were not disclosed, but sources reported the value of the deal at close to $2 billion. The transaction, which KKR is funding primarily from its North America XI Fund, is expected to close in the second quarter of this year and is subject to customary regulatory approvals. KKR has more than $96 billion under management.

AMGH and its affiliates, including Air Evac Lifeteam, operate 222 helicopters and 25 fixed-wing aircraft from 231 bases in 27 states. It is the second-largest U.S. helicopter EMS company, behind Air Methods. Last year AMGH-affiliated aircraft transported more than 75,000 patients and its ground ambulances transported 120,000. KKR has a diversified portfolio of investments in health care and aviation companies, including Panasonic Healthcare and Hospital Corporation of America (HCA) Holdings, and has invested in helicopter-related companies such as OGP service company Westar Aviation in Malaysia and Avincis. KKR led the $31.6 billion acquisition of HCA in 2006, at the time the largest leveraged buyout on record of an American company.

Since 2010, AMGH has been owned by Bain Capital of Boston and Brockway Moran & Partners. Bain was a minority partner with KKR in the HCA acquisition. KKR executive Jim Momtazee left no doubt that the investment bank plans to build AMGH, referring to it as “Air Medical” in a prepared statement that accompanied the acquisition announcement. “Air Medical provides a vital service in the health-care market,” he said. “Having followed Air Medical for several years, we believe that the company is poised for service expansion, and we look forward to partnering with management on this next phase of its evolution.”

AMGH companies include Air Evac Lifeteam, Med-Trans and EagleMed. Air Evac operates from 95 bases in 14 states and flies more than 100 Bell 206L LongRangers. The company is based in West Plains, Mo. Dallas-based Med-Trans partners with hospital systems, medical centers and EMS agencies through 20 programs, representing 36 bases across 15 states. Med-Trans’ service models include alternative delivery/shared resource, community-based or traditional hospital-based. Med-Trans operates more than 40 helicopters, mostly Bell 407s. EagleMed, headquartered in Wichita, operates from 16 community-based locations across three states, using more than 20 Airbus helicopters and Hawker Beechcraft turboprops.