Norsk Helikopter Achieves 30,000 Fleet Hours With Sikorsky Aircraft S-92(R) Helicopter

STRATFORD, Conn., Oct. 6 /PRNewswire/ -- Less than a year after reaching its previous milestone, Norsk Helikopter has reached the 30,000 fleet hour milestone with its Sikorsky S-92(R) helicopter, Sikorsky Aircraft announced today. Sikorsky Aircraft Corp. is a subsidiary of United Technologies Corp. (NYSE: UTX)

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The aircraft achieved the milestone on Sept. 29. The achievement follows the fleet hour milestone of 20,000 hours with the Sikorsky S-92 helicopter, reached on Nov. 26, 2007.

In 2006, Norsk became the first offshore oil operator in the North Sea to reach 10,000 fleet flight hours with the S-92 helicopter. It has continued to expand its fleet of Sikorsky helicopters, now employing a total of seven S-92 helicopters. The company expects to receive two more S-92 helicopters into its fleet in the near future.

"The offshore oil segment in the North Sea is a challenging environment, so to realize these distinct milestones in such an aggressive timeframe is truly remarkable," said Sikorsky Vice President & Chief Marketing Officer Stephen B. Estill. "The S-92 helicopter's record of continuing availability in the rigorous offshore oil segment is a testament to the strength of this aircraft for this mission."

Norsk Managing Director Ivar Eie said utilization hours for the S-92 helicopter have demonstrated an excellent record of performance. "As we pass the 30k milestone, I am impressed with the helicopter's performance and efficiency. Through our operational experience input to Sikorsky, there has been a constant improvement in terms of reliability and availability. As an operator, we certainly have established a very interesting reference for what we as operators should expect from a helicopter manufacturer," Eie said.

Sikorsky Aircraft Corp., based in Stratford, Conn., USA, is a world leader in helicopter design, manufacture, and service. The company's mission statement reflects its long commitment to safety and innovation: "We pioneer flight solutions that bring people home everywhere ... every time(TM)." United Technologies Corp., based in Hartford, Conn., USA, provides a broad range of high technology products and support services to the aerospace and building systems industries.

Norsk Helikopter began operations in 1993 and is a well established helicopter operator providing helicopter transport services on the Norwegian continental shelf. Norsk Helikopter AS has specialized in the transportation of passengers to fixed and mobile installations in the North Sea.