Eurocopter to set up subsidiary

Eurocopter, the world’s largest helicopter maker, on Wednesday announced the setting up of a wholly-owned Indian subsidiary and also an engineering center in Bangalore next year to support its global design and development work.

Eurocopter lags competitor Bell Helicopter in India, with just 30% share of the Indian civilian and parapublic chopper market against Bell’s 50%. This situation is quite different from the global helicopter market pecking order, where Eurocopter claims 53.5% share of the civil and parapublic chopper market share, with Augusta Westland and Bell coming at the second and third positions respectively.

No wonder then that Eurocopter has finally decided to get serious about India and is eyeing 50% market share or sales of up to €100 million  in the Indian civilian helicopter market by 2015.

The European chopper maker aims to sell 25 new helicopters each year after 2015 in India. Besides setting up subsidiary operations, Eurocopter is also planning to build a maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) center for its helicopters in India, primarily to service the fleet of state-run Pawan Hans Helicopters (which has a pact with Eurocopter for assembly of the Cheetah and Chetak helicopters).The center will service Eurocopter’s AS365 Dauphins operated by Pawan Hans, said Eurocopter India CEO Marie Agnes Veve. However, she didn’t elaborate on the investments or the timeframe.

State-owned Pawan Hans has a fleet of 40 helicopters, of which 28 are Dauphins.

Eurocopter India will only sell civilian helicopters, while the parent company will continue to handle sales to Indian defense forces, Veve added.

Separately, Eurocopter executive vice president for commercial helicopters, Joseph Saporite, said the company expects to conclude trials by December for a tender to supply 197 light-utility helicopters to the Indian Army and the Indian Air Force.

The company is offering its Fennec model for the contract.
“We completed two phases of the trials in India earlier this year. The third and last phase with complementary equipment will be concluded by the end of this year in France,” Saporite said without elaborating further.

Eurocopter, earlier, won a tender to supply 197 helicopters to the army and air force in 2007, but India scrapped the contract, citing irregularities in the evaluation of the helicopters. The Indian government invited bids for the helicopters for a second time in 2009. Apart from Eurocopter, Russia’s Kamov is also in the running for this $10 million contract.