Athens-headquartered GainJet Aviation Group is expanding its services to include helicopter charter. Primarily a jet charter operator up to now, the company has added an AgustaWestland AW139 helicopter that will be based in Greece this summer.

The midsize rotorcraft can accommodate 12 passengers in its spacious interior and has a range of over 1,000 km. “We have been examining the idea of adding helicopters to our fleet for some time now as a natural expansion of what we do best, and the AW139 complemented our fleet due to its larger capacity and longer range,” states CEO Ramsey Shaban. “Basing it in Athens is a strategic decision we took since we noticed that there is a lack of such aircraft types available for charter with the ability to accommodate 12 passengers.”

The operation is taking place in cooperation with helicopter service company PHI. Shaban explains: “While we have knowledge and experience in the helicopter services sector, we preferred to do this expansion right. Hence, we were more than happy to team up with PHI on this project. We value its expertise in this field, and our two organisations complement one another well, which all adds to the service as a whole. After all, it is our customers' satisfaction we aim to attain.”

PHI international president Keith Mullett adds: “Our team looks forward to the successful expansion of this key relationship as we expand our capabilities across the region. GainJet's extensive experience in providing high-end business travel solutions, coupled with our 70 plus years of rotary wing operations around the globe, will result in an outstanding partnership.”