Foggy conditions and increased operating costs have prompted a statewide air ambulance company to pull out of Bluefield.

HealthNet says it will be able to cover southern West Virginia better if it relocates its operations from the Mercer County Airport to Raleigh County Memorial Airport.

HealthNet President and Chief Executive George Sovick III says Raleigh County's higher elevation will help with fog, and the airport's location will allow HealthNet's helicopters to shave three-tenths of an hour off their average mission flight.

The company provides emergency and inter-hospital flights across the state. It also has operations in Buckhannon, Charleston, Huntington and Morgantown.