LYNN, Massachusetts – March 5, 2015 – GE Aviation and Bristow Group Inc. signed a 10-year Maintenance Cost Per Hour (MCPHsm) service agreement covering Bristow’s global fleet of CT7-8A turboshaft engines powering their Sikorsky S-92 helicopters. The contract encompasses Bristow’s current fleet of more than 50 GE-powered S-92s and all future aircraft deliveries during the term of the contract.
The agreement continues the long-standing GE–Bristow relationship by combining several short-term MCPH contracts into a single, long-term agreement designed to provide Bristow economical and predictable engine maintenance costs.
In February, 2014, GE Aviation and Bristow Group signed the first engine service agreement for the CT7-2E1 turboshaft engine powering the new, twin-engine AgustaWestland AW189 helicopter. The agreement added Bristow’s new AW189 helicopters to their global fleet of MCPHsm service agreement-maintained engines.
In October, 2014, Bristow Norway AS became the first helicopter operator utilizing GE Aviation’s CT7-8A engine to surpass 15,000 flight hours without a shop visit. The durability and reliability of the CT7-8A engine combine with the superior value of GE’s MCPHsm program to provide operators exceptionally low operating costs.
“In the past year, the value of the MCPH program is apparent in the unrivaled in-service performance of the growing Bristow fleet,” said Ed Birtwell, vice president and general manager of Turboshaft Engines at GE Aviation. “This expanded MCPHsm agreement provides Bristow with a customized service solution on a firm fixed price per engine flight hour basis that we will continue to support with OEM expertise, parts and dedicated management.”
“GE’s proven reliability of the CT7 series engines backed by their MCPH support program provides Bristow with the value and flexibility required to support a global fleet in today’s demanding market,” said John Cloggie, vice president operations transformation and chief technical officer at Bristow Group.
The 2,500-shaft-horsepower-class CT7-8A engine is the commercial leader in GE's successful T700/CT7 family of turboprop and turboshaft engines, powering 25 types of helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft with more than 130 customers in more than 50 countries. Over 500 CT7-8As have been produced and are installed on more than 225 Sikorsky S-92 helicopters and have accumulated more than 1.4 million engine flight hours.
The 2,000-shaft-horsepower-class CT7-2E1 engine is the latest civil-certified addition to the CT7/T700 family of engines and includes a full authority digital electronic control (FADEC) system and state-of-the-art hot section materials for increased power, reliability and fuel savings. More than 30 GE CT7-2E1 engines have been produced for installation on the AW189 following U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) engine certifications in 2013.
GE’s turboshaft production locations include: Lynn, MA (design, assembly, test); Rutland, VT (compressor vanes): Hookset, NH (blisks tubes, compressor vanes); Madisonville, KY (turbine blades, nozzles); Dayton, OH (tubes, brackets, ducts); Muskegon, MI (turbine shrouds, nozzles); Strother, Kansas (assembly, overhaul); Jacksonville, FL (electrical components).
About GE Aviation GE Aviation, an operating unit of General Electric Company (NYSE: GE), is a world-leading provider of commercial and military jet engines and components as well as integrated digital, electric power, and mechanical systems for aircraft. GE Aviation also has a global service network to support these offerings.
About Bristow Group Bristow Group Inc. is the leading provider of helicopter services to the worldwide offshore energy industry based on the number of aircraft operated and one of two helicopter service providers to the offshore energy industry with global operations. The company has major transportation operations in the North Sea, Nigeria and the U.S. Gulf of Mexico, and in most of the other major offshore oil and gas producing regions of the world, including Australia, Brazil, Canada, Russia and Trinidad. For more information, visit the Company's website at www.bristowgroup.com.