In the past month, Sikorsky Aircraft Corp. has settled a pair of lawsuits with a Louisiana company that shuttles workers to oil rigs.
PHI Inc. sued Sikorsky after component failures damaged helicopters in two separate incidents six weeks apart in 2005. No one was injured in the incidents, one of which occurred in flight and the other involving a ground test.
PHI spent $32 million in 2004 to purchase the two Sikorsky helicopters and had sought $8 million in damages. The terms of the settlement were not disclosed.
Of approximately 220 helicopters in PHI”™s fleet, 28 are Sikorsky models. Besides oil-rig shuttles, PHI runs a medical evacuation unit in 14 states.
In separate Sikorsky news, the company reportedly is increasing the size of a planned manufacturing facility in Elmira, N.Y., by a third, adding 50,000 square feet. The facility currently employs 600 people, according to the Elmira Star-Gazette, and will add between 50 and 100 additional workers by year”™s end.
