Jim your figures make scary reading and are correct for 9 single engined helicopters operating on a standard AOC. However, if you have a Restricted A-B AOC then its not quite so bad. Quoting the CAA:
"For the purposes of this charge a Restricted A-B AOC is one which is subject to restrictions which include:
• Day Visual Flight Rules (VFR) only;
• Only single-engine piston aircraft to operate under the AOC;
• All aircraft MTWA on the AOC fleet is less than 2,000 kg;
• A-B operations restricted to points within mainland UK."
If you're flying 206s or single squirrels then this is no use but operating an R44 and R22 fits nicely into this category for the sort of work we do and would replace the ridiculous annual charge of £8900 and £1130 per aircraft with a more manageable charge of £180 per month. Also the current variable charge of £1.03 per hour flown which we pay at the moment seems for some reason to have been withdrawn from 1st April next year. The only thing I can find for variable charges applies to aircraft in excess of 40 tonnes and is the seat/kilometer charge. The paragraph which dealt with aircraft under 40 tonnes has been deleted so we seem to have got out of that one.
Don't get me wrong we still need to generate the single seat passenger revenue to make it all worthwhile and I sympathize with those operators that have to pay the huge fees but at least for the small piston operator we're not out of the market just yet.