HI Uplift: Deal of the Year Awards – Meet the winners
Welcome to the Helicopter Investor Deal of the Year Awards 2026. Four entries triumphed in another competitive field of submissions celebrating the very best of helicopter finance. Lessors, infrastructural investors and operators – businesses old and very new – featured in this year awards. The 2026 award winners included four category winners and the big one – the Overall Deal of the Year.
Calculators in hand, our independent panel of judges had the tough job of separating the impressive from the truly exceptional candidates. The judges were: Sara Dhariwal, aviation analyst and lead appraiser with the Cirium Ascend Consultancy, Alastair Fallon, director and senior appraiser with rotary appraiser F4 – Fly Fast Further First and Clark McGinn, founder of the consultancy Uplifting Advice.
Dhariwal explained the awards’ significance: “Honouring the best in Helicopter financing matters because finance underpins the sector’s growth, resilience and safety,” she tells us. “Beyond funding aircraft, strong structures support fleet modernisation, operational continuity and competition. Recognising leading transactions also helps set benchmarks and inspires confidence – demonstrating what can be achieved and encouraging further investment across the market.”
McGinn told us the Helicopter Investor Deal of the Year awards marked the industry’s readjustment after years of turbulence. “Our industry has faced a decade of hardship, despite providing mission critical services to many industries and communities,” says McGinn. “Now the market is resetting, these awards help recognise the grit and determination of our helicopter friends and colleagues and their aim to innovate and improve our vital industry.”
Fallon thought celebrating the best deals in rotary finance set an example to follow. “Complex financing deals show how creative solutions can unlock much needed finance helping to power the grow of the industry worldwide,”he says.
Capital Markets
The first award was presented for Energy Deal of the Year. This was won by Investec, which provided financing for Titan Helicopter Group. This multi-million-pound deal involved financing Leonardo AW139 aircraft in African and Latin America. The judges commented on the complexity of closing deals in African jurisdictions, where differing legal and enforcement frameworks require careful, tailored structuring.
Successfully financing and refinancing assets in these markets demonstrates strong execution capability, they said. In doing so, the deal supports reliable helicopter operations in energy markets, where consistency is critical.
Investec’s legal advisers were Watson Farley & Williams.
Critical Mission Deal
In a strongly competitive field, the Critical Mission Deal of the Year trophy was awarded to Eliance Aviation. The Spanish emergency air transport services provider won the award for the refinancing of its existing group debt as well as an additional facility for capex and growth.
Headquartered in Madrid, Eliance operates a fleet of more than 90 helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft. With aircraft registered in Spain, Italy and Chile, it provides a range of service including firefighting, medical emergency and search and rescue.
Another winner characterised by its multi-jurisdictional complexity, this deal involved more than 20 facilities, multiple lenders and a cross-border security structure. “The result is a long-term platform supporting essential services such as air medical and firefighting operations and – importantly, it demonstrates that complex cross-border financings are achievable, helping build confidence for further investment across the sector,” said Dhariwal of Cirium.
Watson Farley Williams acted as English, Italian and Spanish counsel to the borrower. Linklaters served as English, Italian and Spanish counsel to the lenders.
M&A Deal
Another strongly contested category was the M&A Deal of the Year 2026 – was awarded to Infracapital and Vesper Infrastructure Partners for their acquisition of SAF Aerogroup. Operating across Europe and Africa, the group provides advanced medical support and rapid-response capabilities and technologies to help governments, local authorities, and international organisations meet critical challenges.
With a fleet of about 90 helicopters, configured for helicopter emergency services, search and rescue and firefighting, the deal had an unverified indicative value of €300m. The funds were managed by Oaktree Capital Management, LP and Bpifrance.
Infracapital has pledged to support SAF in addressing evolving healthcare needs driven by demographic changes and in mitigating the growing threat of extreme weather events due to climate change.
Overall Deal
Finally, came the big one – Overall Deal of the Year. From the start of the judging process one deal truly stood out for its size, complexity and significance. This was Sumitomo Mitsui Finance and Leasing Company Limited (SMFL) acquisition of LCI Helicopters and Macquarie Rotorcraft.
McGinn summed up the deal’s significance: “I’ve long called for sensible consolidation in the helicopter leasing world – so finding LCI and Macquarie coming together under the financial strength of SMFL is just perfect,” he tells us. “The main thing that impressed me was that the senior positions went by merit and not by which team that was worn before the merger – that’s a lot of talent to sustain one of the top two specialist helicopter lessors.”
Dhariwal agreed the SMFL deal stands out for its scale and strategic significance in combining Macquarie and LCI into a more diversified platform and bringing together highly experienced teams under one roof. “This strengthens both capability and market reach, while creating a well-capitalised, long-term player that helps stabilise the sector,” she says. “It also signals clearly that helicopters are a serious, investable asset class, supporting greater institutional confidence and future investment.”
Fallon commented: “The combination of LCI and Macquarie Rotorcraft Leasing [MRL] under SMFL has created a global helicopter leasing leader with a fleet exceeding 310 aircraft across EMS, offshore, utility and mission critical operations.
“With strong financial backing, committed OEM pipelines and a dynamic secondary market strategy, SMFLH stands as one of the most influential platforms in the sector.”
The 2026 Deal of the Year awards were presented this afternoon on the first day of our Helicopter Investor London 2026 conference in central London.
Big thanks to everyone who entered and our judging panel plus special congratulations to all the winners.
At a glance – This year’s winners
- Energy Deal of the Year – Investec financing for Titan Helicopter Group
- Critical Mission Deal of the Year – Eliance Aviation
- M&A Deal of the Year – Infracapital and Vesper Infrastructure Partners acquisition of SAF Aerogroup
- Overall Deal of the Year – Sumitomo Mitsui Finance and Leasing Company Limited (SMFL) acquisition of LCI Helicopters and Macquarie Rotorcraft.
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