Saudi Arabia’s The Helicopter Company (THC) will shortly announce its first international operation, as the fledgling business continues its rapid expansion.
In addition, the operator – owned by the kingdom’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) – will this year launch its urban air mobility (UAM) unit and carry out flight tests of new helicopters intended for a future search and rescue (SAR) business.
Chief executive Arnaud Martinez, speaking to FlightGlobal at Verticon in Dallas on 12 March, said development of an “international footprint” would be a “normal, natural move” to build on its domestic success.
He declines to reveal the location of its overseas push but says it is “not one specific country”.
Martinez is also coy on the segment that operation will be targeted at but hints that energy services support may be one possibility.
In the meantime, THC continues to grow in its home country. Having already started emergency medical services, tourism, and corporate shuttle flights, it will later this month begin a UAM operation.
Initially focused on flights between Riyadh airport and the city’s King Abdullah Financial District (KAFD) using a fleet of Airbus Helicopters H125 light-twins, the business will later be expanded to other routes, he adds.
Martinez says the operation is designed to mature the booking and payment technology necessary for future expansion of the service. “We have a clear mandate from the shareholder to bring an urban air mobility solution to the population.”
He says this “pragmatic approach” will pave the way for a wider roll-out of the operation, which will later also include electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) aircraft.
Towards that goal, THC will later this year issue a request for proposals (RfP) to eVTOL developers seeking an unspecified number of air vehicles. “We believe it is coming. My job in Saudi Arabia is to get ready for that,” he says.
Martinez sees potential to link in with local airlines, offering a last-mile solution to their passengers. Riyadh Air, which launches operations later this year, is also owned by the PIF.
Expansion into the SAR segment is also planned, with flights tests of the H175 and Leonardo Helicopters AW189 tentatively scheduled for the summer.
Martinez says THC “is at the very early stage” of any move into the new sector, but “in 2025 we will focus on bringing super-medium platforms to see how they perform in this segment”.
“We will have to see how they perform in this very challenging environment – 6,000ft, ISA+15 in the summer time.”
THC last year signed framework agreements with both European airframers – covering almost 300 helicopters – which included the AW189 and H175.
Since launching operations in 2019, THC has quickly grown its fleet to more than 60 helicopters and will reach over 70 units by year-end.
“In the coming two or three years we will reach a mature fleet size in the kingdom of around 100 helicopters,” he adds.
