I worked for a heli company once. It was bought by a chap who obviously thought there was tonnes of money in it. 6 months later he realised it was barely breaking even, and sold it.
I heard that from a £230 R22 lesson, the company only sees about £30 profit. Does this sound correct?
It seems the heli companies that make money are the ones that have a) their own maintenance dept, b) good contacts to get charter work and, c) have modest premises
I imagine the CAA fees, insurance and maintenance are the most expensive parts of a heli operation.
I guess it all comes back to over-regulation.
The question is... are the heli accident statistics better in the UK (because of all the regulation), than in the USA? Has anyone any knowledge of this? I'm willing to bet they are the same.