CHC Helicopter Corporation signed a contract for 16 additional EC225s at Heli Expo 2007 last March. These helicopters are to be delivered between 2008 and 2012, and will join the six EC225s already on order.

Eurocopter and CHC have been working together since the early days of the Super Puma family. CHC was the launching customer for the AS332 L2 Super Puma in the 1980s and now operates the largest Super Puma fleet in the world with 50 AS332 L1 and L2 helicopters. It comes as no surprise then that CHC is currently the leading EC225 customer in the world, with 22 helicopters on order as part of large-scale plans to update the fleet and develop activities. While mainly intended for transporting oil and gas industry personnel to oil rigs, CHC also hopes to use these helicopters to make an impact in the SAR segment in the UK.

The EC225s will be operated by two large operational subsidiaries, CHC European Operations and CHC Global Operations. Heli-One, another CHC subsidiary and Eurocopter-approved maintenance center, will be responsible for maintaining the helicopters. Heli-One is the largest Super Puma maintenance, repairs and logistics center in the world after Eurocopter, ensuring the exemplary levels of fleet availability expected on such a major market, and will naturally carry out indepth maintenance for their EC225s. Both parties are eagerly awaiting the first EC225 delivery, scheduled for October 2007. The first helicopters will be operated for Total E&P UK Plc., Total E&P Norge AS, and other customers mainly concentrated around the North Sea region.

The safety, reliability and comfort levels of the EC225, as well as the excellent customer relationship with Eurocopter, all played key roles in the deal. CHC is currently implementing a new strategic orientation, diversifying its portfolio of activities to include other segments such as SAR and EMS. The two EC145s ordered, for example, will be heading to Australia for EMS missions. CHC is also internationalizing its overall operations, which span from the North Sea oil and gas segment to a large Super Puma and Dauphin fleet in Australia. The company has subsidiaries in Brazil (BHS) and India, and is developing activities in the Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan markets. Exciting times are ahead for the Canadian operator.