It’s a subtle shift that barely registers with observers outside the industry, but still: the push to make VIP helicopters as refined and luxurious as private jets is here — and likely to stay.
The days of skimping on air conditioning, high-end accents, plush upholstery and in-flight Wi-Fi are, for the most part, remnants of a previous age; they’ve become the new baseline for many VIPs.
As completion centers navigate a mini-boom in post-pandemic business, we polled several industry leaders to see what customers now expect — and what’s driving the sector forward.
BOUNCING BACK
Not every completion center saw its VIP business take a dive during Covid-19 lockdowns, but many did. Since the pandemic, they’ve largely bounced back.
“We’re super busy,” said David Brigham, president and co-owner at AeroBrigham in Decatur, Texas. “The VIP market definitely follows the economy.”
Congested cities are as unappealing now as they ever were, and many corporations have seen their workforces dispersed; helicopters are a beloved option for quickly shuttling downtown.
“I think originally, helicopters were considered more of a tool,” said Mike Bashlor, managing partner at Meridian Helicopters, a Louisiana-based subsidiary of Cadorath.
“But I do believe we’re seeing a huge uptick in it simply because of the convenience. Even though helicopters are a very expensive tool or toy — whatever you’re using it for — it gives the companies or individuals a huge convenience.”
At Eurotec Vertical Flight Solutions in Eudora, Kansas, the company saw its business grow through the pandemic, and the past three years have seen a steady flow of VIP completion work.
“That trend has continued over the last six months,” said Chad Decker, president and owner of EuroTec. “We’ve been operating at full capacity, completing as many projects as our shop can efficiently handle. This steady pace reflects our commitment to delivering quality without compromising on the meticulous attention to detail that our VIP clients expect.”
In some parts of the industry, there’s also an influx of younger, adventure-seeking private owners who use their helicopter for Insta-worthy escapes, just as they would an off-road vehicle.
“Transitioning into the post-Covid era, people are starting to get more active again and exploratory,” said Keith Moreland, a vice president at Rotorcraft Services Group (RSG) in Fort Worth, Texas.
“A lot of the owner-operators we’re working with now are a little bit younger than some of the clients that we’ve dealt with in past years, and they’re heavily inclined to spontaneous activities of entertainment and fun. They’ll just leave, and they have to have their helicopters to go into these remote areas.”
GOOD AS NEW
The allure of an expensive new airframe doesn’t always align with the budgets of smaller operators, and many VIPs are turning to the refurbished helicopter market for more cost-effective solutions.
A legacy aircraft can be stripped down, rewired and refitted with a VIP interior at a fraction of the cost; and it’s a great way to boost the value of an older airframe.
“We’re getting a lot more people calling us to take their existing aircraft, or for us to find them aircraft, and completely refurbishing them from ground up, to VIP standards — upgrading the electronics, the avionics, glass cockpits, autopilots, things of that nature,” said Mike Bashlor at Meridian Helicopters.
“It’s much cheaper to buy a legacy aircraft and have it brought up to like-new standards. The cost is there to justify doing that. And you can easily get almost the same aircraft as far as quality.”
An aircraft can easily depreciate by three percent per year, dipping below half its original value long before its useful life expires. Some operators invest in legacy airframes with upgraded VIP amenities to boost their resale value and long-term viability.
“You go and spend three or four hundred thousand dollars, or more, or less — just depends what it needs — and you bring it up to like-new standards,” said Bashlor. “All of a sudden, that appraisal value has gone through the roof.”
COMPETING WITH OEMs
Largely due to convenience, VIP completions straight from an aircraft manufacturer are an easy sell — and some independent shops have lost a significant chunk of their business to that trend.
“We compete with all the OEMs [original equipment manufacturers] for brand-new work,” said Jim Freeman at Helicopter Specialties Inc., in Janesville, Wisconsin.
“The OEMs have dived heavily into the aftermarket.”
Still, independent providers have maintained a niche by offering bespoke solutions that eschew unnecessary features.
“There’s pros and cons to that avionics suite that comes off the factory line, but we are working directly with the OEMs to ensure the client is getting exactly what they want,” said Mike Clingerman, chief maintenance officer at Hangar One Avionics, Inc. in Carlsbad, California.
“All operators have a huge advantage taking delivery of a new helicopter with the most basic package, then turn right to us to upgrade their asset with all the bells and whistles. A full completion can be more expensive for owners when going through the manufacturer, but it’s not really about the money for the ‘real’ VIPs, it’s more about getting the very best quality of work.”
At Metro Aviation, the bespoke approach is both a hallmark and a calling card — a core part of the Louisiana-based completion center’s business.
“Sometimes the end user doesn’t want all the options that come with a package they purchase; they just want certain things,” said Amy McMullen, director of aircraft configuration at Metro.
“I think that’s one thing that we’re able to do. They’re able to pick and choose what they want in the aircraft.”
UNCOMPROMISING LUXURY
Air conditioning, leather cabin walls, custom cabinetry, tasteful accents, ceramic exterior paint protection, multi-function displays in the cockpit — they’ve all become standard for many VIPs.
“They have those deep cosmetic needs that maybe 10 years ago, were less prevalent,” said Rodney Kucheran, director of business development at Cadorath. “Now they want the ultra-leather, multitone stitches, upgraded avionics … even additional things like the autopilots.”
“If it’s a cabin class, there’s usually a demand with USB ports and laptop or iPad mounts,” said Jim Freeman at Helicopter Specialties. “We modified [an interior] for one of our corporate customers to hold a coffee pot in the morning, a bottle of wine in the afternoon.”
In-flight Wi-Fi is popular with some VIPs, particularly business leaders in urban areas who want to check email or sift through documents on their way to the airport.
“They’re wanting leather-covered seats, carpets … the ability to make phone calls from the back, things like that,” said Amy McMullen from Metro Aviation.
Adjustable LED cabin lighting is another prized option for VIP passengers, who can modify brightness and tone with an app on their cellphones.
“We’ve seen a rise in the installation of advanced systems such as the True Blue/Vertical Flight Solutions Lithium-Ion Battery Kits, which can reduce aircraft weight by up to 21 pounds as well as negate the need for expensive capacity checks/overhauls due to the on-condition maintenance routine of the battery kit,” said Chad Decker at EuroTec.
“Additionally, many clients are opting for Garmin avionics upgrades and autopilot to ensure they have cutting-edge navigation and control systems. Beyond that, we’ve been incorporating BLR Kits, camera installations, and custom paintwork to meet the high expectations of our VIP clientele.
“These enhancements not only provide the ‘best of the best’ in terms of luxury and convenience but also contribute to fuel efficiency, aircraft stability, safety, and overall operational excellence.”
Then again, some VIP clients use their helicopters to escape the shackles of constant connectivity.
“A few years back, [Wi-Fi] was a thing,” said David Brigham. “Some people, they’d rather not have the connectivity. They’d rather not be pestered. They want to get on the aircraft and go do what they’re going to do and come back and take care of things when they get to their home base.”
MULTI-ROLE VERSATILITY
An influx of younger VIP clients coincides with a set of new expectations for private aircraft; many corporate operators demand durability and versatility for a variety of missions.
“There’s a lot of transition to utility-type aircraft, where the clients can rapidly transition from that plush, high-end, exotic interior to a more of a protected or downgraded utility system,” said Keith Moreland at Rotorcraft Services Group.
“A lot of our clients have remote areas [where] they own property and cabins. They want to be able to fly in there with their hiking, camping, sport utility gear and not damage their VIP interior.”
This ruggedness evokes a high-end SUV that offers all the comforts of a luxury car, plus the horsepower and hauling capacity required to go deep into the wild.
“They’ll land the helicopter in a remote back area, and snow-ski,” said Moreland.
“For us here at RSG, that’s been a recent trend, where they’re wanting to have that multi function interior. They don’t necessarily want to have a lot of time in shifting, taking flooring in and out, or taking seats in and out. They want nice, resilient coverings that can snap down in place, over their VIP interior, over their seats, over their flooring.
“We have our own engineering team here at RSG, so we’ve been doing a lot of design and development and integration into those types of interior kits.”
PREDICTING THE FUTURE
To some degree, predicting design trends is a fool’s errand; it’s all guesswork. But as technology is enmeshed with every aspect of our lives, many VIP completion centers expect a higher-tech future.
The key here, as in any other sector of the helicopter industry, is to adapt quickly to whatever the market demands.
“[We’re] known pretty well for being able to adapt to the customer’s needs in every arena,” said Amy McMullen at Metro Aviation. “The ‘hard no’ is not typically what we do. If we can do it and get it approved by the FAA, we do it.”
“You have to constantly be evolving,” added Keith Moreland and RSG.
“If you stand still, you stand by. You get left behind. So you’ve got to be looking for that next big thing coming into the market, and try to be out in front of the requirements or what clients are looking for.”
Still, steady growth seems a safe bet. The aviation industry continues to expand, and private travel is increasingly popular — especially among high-net-worth individuals, said Chad Decker from EuroTec.
“We expect a corresponding rise in demand for customized, high-end completions,” he said. “Our goal is to stay ahead of trends and offer top-tier service to all of our clients.”
New platforms like the Airbus H160 and Bell 505 offer new possibilities for VIP customers, and the abundance of legacy airframes represent another massive opportunity.
“We look at the market to really continue to trend upward and to even grow significantly toward the middle of 2025,” said Keith Moreland at RSG. “That’s what the data is looking like.”