Report: Sikorsky gets Milestone contract

In a major boost for Sikorsky Aircraft Corp.”™s commercial sales division, Milestone Aviation Group Ltd. ordered 19 large helicopters in a contract reportedly worth as much as $682 million.

For the past several years, Sikorsky has been dependent primarily on U.S. military and foreign government sales. The Stratford-based manufacturer is a subsidiary of United Technologies Corp. in Hartford.

Dublin, Ireland-based Milestone Aviation was founded by Richard Santulli, the former CEO of the NetJets fractional jet ownership service.

According to the Wall Street Journal, Milestone plans to lease out the Sikorsky S-92 helicopters currently on order to energy companies shuttling workers and equipment to offshore oil rigs operating in the Gulf of Mexico and other waters.

Milestone signed a contract last February for three Sikorsky S-92s, with the company previously having bought four of the helicopters.