Stratford-based Sikorsky Aircraft recently penned a deal with China-based Yunnan Jingchen Group to purchase an S-92 helicopter for transporting corporate and government VIPs.
Sikorsky is a subsidiary of United Technologies Corp., based in Hartford.
Yunnan Jingchen Group recently received Chinese government approval to establish a general aviation company named Ruili Helicopter Group. The new S-92 helicopter will become the second operated by Jingchen, after the first Sikorsky chopper was ordered in 2012 and delivered in June 2013.
The newly ordered S-92 helicopter is scheduled for delivery November 2015.
Web source Aircraft.com places the cost at $17.7 million for the S-92.
“Jingchen is a new and already growing customer. We are excited to be able to support their expansion and are working closely to help ensure a smooth start to their operations by providing initial technical support on site,” said Ed Beyer, vice president of Sikorsky Global Helicopters, the commercial aircraft business of Sikorsky Aircraft.
The multi-mission S-92 helicopter incorporates numerous safety features, including a so-called “flaw-tolerant design.”
Sikorsky will deliver its 200th S-92 helicopter this year. The global fleet is currently approaching 590,000 flight hours. Among the missions performed by the S-92 helicopter are offshore oil worker transportation, diplomatic transport, search and rescue operations and airline service, according to the company.
Jingcheng also purchased a new Sikorsky S-76D helicopter in 2012 for delivery in December 2013.
The S-76D helicopter received federal certification in 2012. More than 800 S-76 helicopters in the global fleet have accumulated 6.2 million flight hours during three decades of operation.
“So far, thanks to its global supply chain, Sikorsky has done a good job of holding down costs,” according to the publication Business Jet Traveler. “Offshore operators should be able to get into a new S-76D, with no-frills utility seating for 12 to 13, for around $10 million. Corporate operators who want plush seating for four to six can grab one for under $12 million.”
