Belgium-headquartered NHV Group has taken delivery of its twelfth H175 super-medium twin helicopter. The aircraft was added to NHV's base in Esbjerg, from where the company now operates six helicopters of the same model in support of its clients' offshore North Sea operations.

The delivery underlines the group's strategy of meeting evolving mission needs in the oil and gas industry. It is committed to offering outstanding performance, efficiency, the capability of carrying a full payload to 90 per cent of the North Sea's offshore installations and the flexibility to serve for search and rescue in support of such offshore operations.

NHV was the global H175 launch customer and its first two aircraft entered into service in December 2014. The H175 is currently in operation in the NHV North Sea bases of Den Helder in the Netherlands; Aberdeen, Scotland; and in Esbjerg, Denmark.

“This delivery fits our company's mission to operate a young and modern fleet. With our H175 fleet approaching 35,000 flight hours and recent H175 contract awards, this addition is a further expression of the confidence that both our customers and NHV have in the aircraft. Adding an extra aircraft also allows us to continue to grow our H175 experience as fleet leader while securing the aircraft's availability,” says CEO Steffen Bay.

The group has also signed a new long-term contract with Premier Oil to provide helicopter services to its North Sea assets. Daily flights with the H175 will depart from NHV's Aberdeen base for a period of five years and the company plans to add another brand new H175 to its fleet there.

NHV started operating out of Aberdeen at the beginning of 2016 and announced the opening of a new hangar, apron and passenger handling facilities in October 2016. NHV's base manager Jamie John says: “We are delighted that Premier Oil has decided to partner with NHV for its North Sea operations. We are looking forward to building a strong partnership with it and are eager to start flying on its behalf later this year. This new contract again allows us to showcase our safe, reliable, and efficient H175 services.”

The company has now exceeded 30,000 flight hours with its H175 fleet. “This represents the culmination of four years of dedication and hard work, in which we successfully positioned the H175 as the new standard for oil and gas missions,” adds Bay. “Our H175s have become synonymous for safe, reliable and quality operations, even in the most challenging environments. We thank our valued customers, staff and suppliers for helping us reach this new milestone.”