Bristow hails three megatrends shaping revenue

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by Mike Stones

8 May 2026

Bristow is looking for tailwinds from three global megatrends.

Bad things happen in threes, according to Western superstition. But not just bad things – good things too, according to Bristow Group. It believes three global megatrends will shape the civil helicopter market worldwide and benefit its business. The key drivers will be increased defence spending – leading to the greater outsourcing of government services – the prioritisation of energy security and the electrification of transportation.

Christopher Bradshaw, president, CEO and director of Bristow was frank about the headwinds facing the business. “While geopolitical conflicts and tensions have driven turbulent and concerning global conditions thus far in 2026, these macro developments underscore the conviction we have in the outlook for Bristow’s business,” he said on the company’s first-quarter (Q1) earnings call on Wednesday.

Tailwinds of opportunity

So, the operator is confident it can turn the headwinds of global uncertainty into tailwinds of opportunity to benefit the business. Not least because rising defence spending over the next few years is likely to force Western governments to outsource services – such as search and rescue – in a bid to cut costs. “We’re seeing a lot of conversations – particularly out of Europe right now – as those countries have committed to increase their defence spending, usually tied to percentages of GDP [gross domestic product],” said Bradshaw.

“They’re looking for ways to balance their overall budgets. And one of the ways they could potentially do that, as they’re spending more money on tanks and missiles, is potentially outsourcing some of the civilian services like the coast guards. So, we’re having conversations with more countries, again, particularly in Europe about potentially outsourcing their civilian services, which could be a source of growth for our core search and rescue business.”

Government customers

But it’s not just government contracts for search and rescue. Bristow already provides other aviation services to militaries and government customers such as troop movements and ISR (Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance) missions. “We think those mission profiles will be an additional source of growth for Bristow as we look to expand our capabilities and expand our customer base that we’re servicing by providing that broader spectrum of services,” said Bristow.

The second megatrend said to favour Bristow was the growing importance of energy security. “Recent geopolitical events have placed an enduring emphasis on where hydrocarbon supplies are located and the established offshore energy basins that Bristow services represent some of the most attractive and secure sources of supply,” he said.

Deepwater projects worldwide are favourably positioned and offer attractive relative returns within the asset portfolios of oil and gas companies, he argued. Bristow believes such offshore projects will receive an increasing share of future upstream capital investment at a time of rising demand for offshore lift coupled with the tight supply of helicopters. Plus, the business has the opportunity to bring in aircraft on lease or purchase them – depending on the circumstances of the market opportunity.

‘Heavy and super-medium helicopters’

“The fleet status for offshore-configured heavy and super-medium helicopters remains tight and the ability to bring in new capacity remains constrained with long manufacturing lead times,” said Bradshaw. “This constructive supply and demand balance, combined with an increased prioritisation of energy security, supports a positive outlook for the offshore helicopter sector.”

Closer to home, Bristow said it remained relatively insulated from energy price shocks as it is “naturally hedged” with most contracts specifying fuel as a pass-through cost to the end customer. (The one exception is the commercial airline that it owns and operates in Northern Australia, where it has imposed a fuel levy on ticket sales).

The final megatrend – the electrification of transportation – fits with Bristow’s decision to prioritise the development of next-generation aircraft powered by electric, hybrid electric and other new propulsion technologies.

For example, last month the operator signed an agreement to test zero‑ and low‑emission aircraft with developer Electra, Norwegian Civil Aviation Authority and the country’s airport authority Avinor. As part of the agreement, Electra and Bristow will test Electra’s hybrid-electric Ultra Short aircraft – said to be capable of operating from areas as small a football pitch.

‘Capital commitment’

“As a leader in vertical flight solutions for over 75 years, Bristow has a unique opportunity to leverage our core competencies as an advanced proven operator to serve the needs of this new industry sector [advanced air mobility],” said Bradshaw. “We believe the company has created significant option value with minimal capital commitment to date in what is expected to be a large and rapidly growing addressable market for these new generation aircraft.”

Bristow is looking at a broad range of regional air mobility applications, which could include both cargo and passenger transportation alongside longer routes. (Perhaps, ultimately eVTOL services in Australia to complement its commercial airline and elsewhere).

From the future to the (recent) past, as Jennifer Whalen, senior vice president and chief financial officer summed up the company’s first-quarter performance. “While the first quarter is typically our seasonally lowest quarter, Bristow’s total revenues were $11.4 million higher compared to Q4 2025, primarily due to increased activity in our Government Services business and increased rates and activity in certain of our key Offshore Energy Services or OES markets,” said Whalen.

Adjusted EBITDA was $0.9m lower in Q1, mainly due to higher repair and maintenance costs and lease and equipment costs across our segments, she added. Net income was $13.1m ($0.44 per diluted share) versus $18.4m ($0.61 per diluted share) achieved in Q4 2025.

Bristow affirmed its 2026 guidance ranges of $1.6bn to $1.7bn for total revenues and $295m to $325m for adjusted EBITDA. (Read analyst Raymond James’ early view of the results here).

Taken together, Bristow’s financial performance and the likely influence of the megatrends added up to create a very positive outlook for Bristow’s business in 2026 and beyond, both executives agreed. So, perhaps, the rule of three is about to pay off for Bristow proving that good things really can happen in threes.

Meanwhile, Whalen will be exploring the scope to grow government contracts in her presentation Transforming Bristow at our Helicopter Investor London conference on Tuesday June 16th 2026.

Bristow Q1 results – at a glance

*Total revenues: $388.7m [$377.3m in Q4 2025]*Net income: $13.1m [$18.4m in Q4 2025]

*Adjusted EBITDA: $59.3m [$60.1m in Q4 2025]

*Offshore Energy Services revenues: $6.9m higher with revenues in the Americas up $5.6m due to increased rates and higher utilisation in US and Trinidad

*Government Services revenues: $7.8m higher due to the transition of the Irish Coast Guard (IRCG) contrac

*Other Services revenues: $3.2m lower due to lower seasonal utilisation in Australia

*Affirmed 2026 Adjusted EBITDA outlook range: $295m – $325m.

HI Uplift Dashboard: Helicopters for sale

Multi engine

*Total for sale/lease: 244 – the same as last week

*Percentage for sale/lease: 2.36%

*Absorption rate: 3.24 months

*Total fleet: 10,348 – 10 more than last week.

Single engine

*Total for sale/lease: 408 – one fewer than last week

*Percentage for sale/lease: 2.99%