Long-term maintenance support under Parts-By-The-Hour scheme with global coverage leveraging on the data-driven approach, improving efficiency, fleet management and standardized capital budgeting

PHI will benefit from the latest in digital services developed by Leonardo and is based on constant data monitoring, gathering and analysis, diagnostics and predictive maintenance services as well as smart assistance

Leonardo and PHI Group (PHI) signed a long-term Special Component Plan (SCP) that will bring PHI’s AW139 helicopter fleet back into an OEM-level Powered-By-The-Hour (PBH) agreement. PHI, a leading helicopter service provider for energy, search and rescue, and air medical transport missions, currently operates a fleet of 20 total AW139 and AW109 helicopters.

The new agreement, the first SCP in the United States to be also global (supporting PHI’s three main operating regions: Americas, EMEA & APAC), will be dedicated to the existing fleet of AW139s in service to provide long-term maintenance support to help mitigate cost uncertainty and standardize maintenance expenses that are more directly correlated to flight hours. Also, this agreement enhances and solidifies Leonardo’s and PHI’s partnership and cooperation.

The SCP PBH support model generates a virtuous circle and relevant benefits for the operator, based upon a data-driven approach. Among the benefits, better configuration control, a forecast of the fleet behavior, as well as an optimization of the overall asset management, are key ingredients of the Special Components Plan proposal.

This data driven approach will also leverage the recently established Diagnostic Services Tower based in Sesto Calende (Italy) which, combined with a renewed Fleet Operations Centre, builds a collaborative workspace with broad access to global fleet data. This one-of-a-kind service and the digital environment it recreates are fully in line with Leonardo’s strategy focused on growing advanced digital services, especially when it comes to data monitoring, gathering and analysis, diagnostics and predictive maintenance services as well as smart assistance. The Special Components Plan thus will be an enabler for allowing real-time information about aircraft status and use, material service enhancement to best manage spares, analytics for data-driven training and flight operation optimization.

Vittorio Della Bella, SVP Customer Support Services and Training, Leonardo Helicopters, said “We’re extremely pleased with the decision of PHI to come back to us to guarantee comprehensive support and maintenance coverage for their AW139 and AW109 fleet. The range of service plans and digital services we’ve developed in-house in recent years, designed around our latest generation helicopters featuring significant growth potential, provides second-to-none advantages, efficiency, low risk and high service customization. We look forward to executing the new SCP program for PHI.”

“Leonardo has presented an innovative new approach to the legacy cost-per-hour agreements,” said Keith Mullett, Managing Director – PHI Aviation. “This new PBH agreement will not only help control costs but also improve material dispatch reliability, allowing PHI to continue providing safe and reliable aircraft for our teams, our passengers and our customers.”

Based in Lafayette, Louisiana, PHI Group is a leading provider of global helicopter solutions for customers in the energy, air medical and MRO industries. With a fleet of more than 200 helicopters spanning six continents, PHI has provided safe and efficient support to providers for more than 70 years.