Sky-High Luxury

For Today’s Global Elite, A New Generation Of Super-luxe Helicopters Is Providing Ultimate Comfort, Convenience And Style.

- Sam Mckeith

Think luxury helicopters are all noisy, clunky and overpriced? It may be time to think again. That’s because the choppers of yesteryear are fast being replaced with cutting-edge deluxe helis that offer ultraconvenience, style and security. Given this transformation, it’s no wonder that more HNWIs, VVIPs and business leaders are jumping into them ahead of private jets.

It’s also perhaps little surprise that major manufacturers are jostling to cash in on the high-end market, rolling out models for the ultra-rich. Indeed, Airbus Helicopters, Leonardo, Bell Helicopter, and Sikorsky are all developing new machines for the wealthy buyer, with price tags topping US$24 million.

Speed, safety & conversation

Becker Helicopters CEO Jan Becker says today’s luxury helicopters possess what they lacked in the past – speed and silence. “There’s no point getting some bus,” Captain Becker, founder of the A$20 million (US$14.4 million) Australian helicopter consultancy business, tells The CEO Magazine.

“Buyers want speed, and noise is also a big issue. The new type of blades coming out are about noise abatement – they really do reduce sound. They’re not just geared to the military now; manufacturers are looking at what the corporate market wants.”

Extra focus on the luxury market also means more safety features, Becker says.

She points, for example, to “single-engine fly-away capability”, which refers to the ability of new crafts to operate with one engine out of action.