At an investor conference in New York last month, Sikorsky Aircraft Corp.”™s president ignited headlines with his noncommittal response to a question on whether the company would consider acquiring rival Bell Helicopter.
As it turns out these days, Sikorsky chief Jeff Pino doesn”™t need a lift from Bell, his former employer.
Capping a remarkable recovery from a debilitating strike just three years ago, Sikorsky reported having nearly 9,300 employees at its Stratford headquarters and nearby facilities.
The new data widened Sikorsky”™s lead over Fairfield-based General Electric Co. as the largest employer in Fairfield County. Sikorsky parent United Technologies Corp. is the biggest company operating in Connecticut with about 28,000 employees at present, though UTC recently announced plans for job cuts at Pratt & Whitney and other divisions, totaling 11,600 people companywide.
By contrast, Sikorsky is still hiring at a steady clip under Pino, listing nearly 100 open job positions in Connecticut alone as of late March ”“ from test pilots and propulsion specialists, to accountants and MBA graduates for its managerial training program.
Sikorsky also continues to increase staff at its operation in Horseheads, N.Y., where it performs final assembly on Black Hawk helicopters built in Stratford. And the U.S. Chamber of Commerce in Poland named Sikorsky “investor of the year,” recognizing the company”™s efforts to modernize the PZL Mielec aircraft manufacturing plant it acquired two years ago. PZL Mielec last month rolled out the first Black Hawk cabin produced for an international customer, and additional cabins will be shipped back stateside for installation in helicopters slated for sale to the U.S. Army.
While Sikorsky”™s efforts to add assembly capacity in Poland and upstate New York sparked concern the company would limit hiring in Connecticut, that has not been the case as its latest work-force figures prove. And its renewed local commitment has provided a much-needed boost for the Fairfield County region, helping to offset the economic impact of job losses at other large employers in the region.
In late March, UTC CEO Louis Chênevert addressed Middlesex County Chamber of Commerce members in Cromwell, and encouraged state leaders to maintain tax credits for research and development and to hold the line on elevating business costs through tax increases or other measures.
“Connecticut needs to remember it is in competition with almost every other state in the union to attract and retain good paying jobs,” Chênevert said.
The key question remains at what point the global recession must inevitably catch up with Sikorsky. The Federal Aviation Administration predicts aviation demand and sales will drop this year and take two more years to fully recover.
According to the Newtown-based market research firm Forecast International, Sikorsky will sell more medium- and heavy-lift helicopters than any other manufacturer in the world, ahead of Boeing Co., Bell Helicopter and the European consortium NH Industries.
Europe”™s biennial Paris Air Show this June may provide a preview for Sikorsky”™s potential to retain its lead after 2020 ”“ and by proxy its ability to expand its Fairfield County capabilities even further. The company may be angling to debut its new X2 prototype helicopter there, which features dual, stacked main rotors and a rear propeller configured like that of a wing propeller on a conventional airplane. Sikorsky is designing the helicopter to cruise at up to a third faster speeds than the Black Hawk and other helicopters can manage today.
