DALLAS, TX--(Marketwired - January 31, 2017) - CHC Group (OTC PINK: HELIQ) (the "Company" or "CHC") today announced the beginning of a year-long celebration of the operator's 70-year history since its humble beginnings as a crop dusting operation in British Columbia in April of 1947. CHC traces its roots back to Carl Agar, A.H. "Barney" Bent and Al Stringer, the three Canadian Air Force veterans who founded Okanagan Air Services on April 18, 1947. Over the next seven decades, CHC evolved from a single helicopter to a global leader in offshore transport, search and rescue, utility and emergency medical services.
"Our entire team recognizes that we are standing on the shoulders of some of the giants in the rotorcraft industry," said Karl Fessenden, president and CEO of CHC Helicopter. "We recognize, appreciate and value the achievements that have helped build our legacy, and appreciate the contributions from our leadership and the many men and women who have worked hard across our business and over many years to support our customers."
Okanagan Air Service took delivery of its first aircraft in August 1947, and Carl Agar perfected the utility use of helicopters in rugged and remote mountainous terrain. By 1950, Okanagan was supporting the world's largest year-round helicopter-supported construction project located in northern Canada.
As Okanagan Air Services grew, it was renamed to Okanagan Helicopters Limited in 1952. The company expanded into the oil and gas sectors and operations expanded north to the Arctic Islands, east to Newfoundland and then south to the United States. By the late 1950s, Okanagan was one of the largest and most experienced helicopter operators in the world.
Okanagan flew its first international contract in Central Asia in 1963, its first twin-engine IFR offshore crew change flight in the North Sea in 1965, and its first offshore flights to drilling platforms off North America's the Pacific and Atlantic coasts in 1967 and 1969 respectively. During the 1970s and 1980s, Okanagan's expertise was in high demand, winning international oil and gas contracts in more than two-dozen nations, including the People's Republic of China.
In 1987, Craig Dobbin's Sealand Helicopters merged with Okanagan Helicopters and Toronto Helicopters to create the Canadian Holding Company, which later became CHC. From this platform, the company continued to explore global merger and acquisition opportunities, including a 1994 merger with British International Helicopters, the 1999 acquisition of Norway's Helikopter Services Group (including the original Bond Helicopters in the UK, Court Helicopters in South Africa and Australia's Lloyd Helicopters) and the 2004 acquisition of Schreiner Aviation Group of the Netherlands which had operations in Europe, Africa and Asia. In 2005, CHC partnered with Brazilian Helicopter Services (BHS) to further expand its capabilities into Latin America. Each of these companies also have their own rich histories that CHC will honor throughout the year.
In 2004, CHC created two distinct divisions: Helicopter Services, which covered global operations and Heli-One, the world's largest independent helicopter maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) provider. Today, both divisions continue to serve customers around the world across six continents. Each year more than one million people rely on CHC aircraft to help them safely reach their destinations.
"We are proud of CHC's rich history and are proud of our culture which recognizes and appreciates the various opportunities that have allowed us to become the global operators we are today. In the coming months, we will share additional stories, people, images and moments from our 70-year history with our customers, employees and others," said Fessenden. "We are proud to look back on our heritage, especially as we prepare to move into a new era for CHC in the coming weeks. We also encourage everyone who has their own CHC moments and stories to share their memories as well."
About CHC
CHC Helicopter, celebrating 70 years of safety, innovation and service, is a global leader in enabling customers to go further, do more and come home safely, including oil and gas companies, government search-and-rescue agencies and organizations requiring helicopter maintenance, repair and overhaul services. Learn more at http://www.chc.ca/.
Cautionary Note on Forward-Looking Statements
This press release and other statements that we may make contain forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are statements that are not historical facts and include statements about our expectations for the timing and execution of our restructuring plan, our future financial condition and future business plans and expectations, the effect of, and our expectations with respect to, the operation of our business, adequacy of financial resources and commitments and operating expectations during the pendency of our court proceedings. Such forward-looking statements are based upon the current beliefs and expectations of our management, but are subject to risks and uncertainties, which could cause actual results and/or the timing of events to differ materially from those set forth in the forward-looking statements. These risks and uncertainties are detailed from time to time in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended April 30, 2016 and its quarterly report for the period ended July 31, 2016. The Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission are available at www.sec.gov. You are urged to consider these risks and other factors carefully in evaluating the forward-looking statements herein and are cautioned not to place undue reliance on such forward-looking statements, which are qualified in their entirety by this cautionary statement. The forward-looking statements speak only as of the date on which they are made and the Company undertakes no obligation to publicly update such forward-looking statements to reflect subsequent events or circumstances. No assurances can be given that our efforts to effectively reorganize under Chapter 11 of the Bankruptcy Code will ultimately be successful or that we will succeed in strengthening our balance sheet or increase our financial flexibility. Should one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize, or should underlying assumptions prove incorrect, actual outcomes may vary materially from those indicated. Nothing in this press release shall constitute a solicitation of any holders of any of our indebtedness or our securities or an offer to buy or sell, or a solicitation of an offer to buy or sell, any securities of the Company. Any securities that may be offered pursuant to our Chapter 11 proceedings will not be or have not been registered under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and may not be offered or sold in the United States absent registration or an applicable exemption from registration requirements.
