Company President Says They Could Be There In "The Next Few Years"

At a news conference at the HAI Heli-Expo in Houston, TX Sunday, Sikorsky President and CEO Jeff Pino noted that the company could be positioned to become the world's biggest helicopter company in the not-too-distant future.

Pino reported that 2009 was a strong year for Sikorsky, which showed over $6.3 billion in turnover for the year ... $1.1 billion of that in its commercial helicopter business. "If you look at how our competitors calculate their backlogs, we have some $12 billion of business,'" said Pino. "In the next few years we could be the biggest helicopter company on the planet."

Reports indicate that the U.S. Army's Blackhawk and U.S. Navy's Seahawk (pictured, above) fleets account for a good deal of Sikorsky's backlog. It is also moving forward with the development of the CH-53 heavy lift aircraft for the Marine Corps, and Pino says the State Department was considering S-61s for use in Afghanistan.

Pino said the commercial side of the house represents 25% of the company's business, with solid orders for S-92, S-72, and Schweizer aircraft. He also said the new S-76D (artist's concept, above) was set for first deliveries in 2011, with the 800th S-76 rolling off the line in the near future.

FMI: www.sikorsky.com