Eurocopter India retains market lead in 2012
Eurocopter India captured 70 percent share of the new civilian bookings and 43 percent of registered deliveries in the region.
Eurocopter India captured 70 percent share of the new civilian bookings and 43 percent of registered deliveries in the region.
Eurocopter India recorded 12 helicopter bookings for 2012, driven largely by the sale of nine light twin-engine EC135. This represents a 70 percent market share for the two-year-old Indian subsidiary in a civilian helicopter market that is making steady progress as the country begins to realise the potential and benefits of helicopter operations.
On the deliveries front, Eurocopter India is again leading for the third consecutive year with a total of six registered helicopter deliveries last year, for an overall 43 percent market share. The company performed very well in the light- and medium-category, where every three out of four rotorcraft delivered were Eurocopter products.
“Eurocopter has a 50-plus year relationship with India, and the Eurocopter India affiliate’s performance last year underscores the value of our company’s ability to provide proximity services to meet customers’ needs,” explained Eurocopter president & CEO Lutz Bertling. “We will continue developing our presence in this market, building on the strengths of Eurocopter India as the only full-fledged subsidiary to be established in the country, with plans to expand organically and through co-operations with local partners.”
In addition to Eurocopter India’s headquarters in New Delhi, the company has an office in Bangalore, and it expanded the footprint during 2012 with the opening of a new Mumbai location. Industrial co-operation remains a focal strategy for the company, with many local partnerships formed to boost the local aviation industry. Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd. has been the global supplier of composite chipsets for Eurocopter’s Ecureuil/Fennec helicopter family; Pawan Hans Helicopters, who owns the largest Dauphin fleet in the world, operates the only Eurocopter-approved MRO (maintenance, repairs and overhaul) centre for Dauphin helicopters in India; and Mahindra & Mahindra has come on board as a commercial partner in the joint development of new market segments.
Photograph: SN1089, © Copyright Eurocopter, Charles Abarr
