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Helicopter OEMs shift to EMS, SAR with O&G in the tank
February 22, 2016 By Reuters
Helicopter makers are scrambling for new sources of demand after being hit by a severe downturn in their biggest non-military clientele - oil and gas producers. One promising area is public emergency services, executives said at the Singapore Airshow.
The oil and gas industry, which uses helicopters to shuttle their crew to offshore sites, accounted last year for as much as 40 percent of the roughly $6 billion annual sales of helicopters for civil use, according to aerospace research firm Teal Group.
Its decline has pushed manufacturers such as Airbus Helicopters, the world’s largest maker of commercial helicopters, to emphasize alternative segments. They are focusing now on demand from Emergency Medical Services (EMS), law enforcement, Search and Rescue (SAR) and firefighting. | READ MORE
