Aviation consultancy IBA has noticed increasing interest in the helicopter sector. It says that there are more investor enquiries, oil and gas rig utilisation is improving and the super medium category has grown significantly over the past 12 months.

The global commercial helicopter market was valued at $8.2 billion in 2017 and is expected to increase to $11.6 billion by 2027. Key factors expected to drive the market for commercial helicopters, aside from offshore oil and gas, include rising demand from emerging economies in the Asia Pacific, Middle East and Latin American markets, along with increased utilisation of existing helicopters across many different sectors like emergency services, law enforcement, para public and corporate transport and tourism.

According to IBA there are more than 33,000 helicopters operational today, counting both piston and turbine types. The majority of commercially driven operators fly turbine helicopters. Out of around 22,000 turbine helicopters, 90 per cent are owned by the operators, and the remainder are leased.

Despite the overall positivity, the trend of deliveries in the helicopter market closely follows the price of oil, as offshore oil and gas operations are key drivers of demand. Since the oil price plummeted in 2014, helicopter deliveries have followed suit. The most pronounced decreases have been seen in the heavy and medium category, which primarily serves the offshore oil market. Deliveries have also been affected by the slowdown in investor confidence.

Europe has maintained a healthy share of the global helicopter fleet, with 27.4 per cent.