Nigel Turner signs contract for seven AW119Ke
Heli-USA president inks deal last Friday for seven AgustaWestland AW119Ke helicopters
Speaking exclusively to Corporate Jet Investor at the World Travel
Market being held at the ExCel exhibition centre in London, Nigel Turner, president and chief
executive officer of Heli-USA said that he had signed a contract for seven
AW119Ke helicopters. The deal includes aircraft spares and is valued at $28 million.
The deal was signed last Friday with three aircraft being delivered by
February 2012, two more by April 2012 and the final three by December 2012.
These are part of a fleet renewal programme and will replace Eurocopter AS350
AStars currently in the Heli-USA fleet. The first aircraft due to be delivered
soon will be painted with a special scheme.
The new helicopters will carry seven passengers, one more than the
AS350. The company flies around the Grand Canyon and has a terminal at Las Vegas Airport. Heli-USA currently operates
eleven Eurocopter helicopters. So far this year, they have carried around 200
thousand passengers and 1.3 million since they started operations.There are around 100 helicopters flying the Grand
Canyon tours but these are the first AgustaWestland helicopters
used by any operator in the Canyon.
Turner said “Really excited about the co-operation between the Italians
and British. Everyone worked so hard to get this deal together.”
He continued “Emilio Dalmasso has been wonderful about this project.”