PHI Aviation recently celebrated the official opening of our Asia Pacific (APAC) headquarters with an event in Perth, Western Australia in August 2022. Our new APAC offices are located at 1100 Hay Street, and will oversee bases across Australia, New Zealand and the Philippines, expanding PHI Aviation’s global reach.

Speaking at the event, our Managing Director, Keith Mullett said that Perth was chosen as the regional headquarters because of its proximity to key customers and strategic growth and diversification opportunities in the region.

“Our decision to expand in Western Australia was primarily driven by a strong focus on customer service, potential growth opportunities and our priority on safety that requires key decision-making on the ground. We see huge potential in the region,” said Mr. Mullett.

“We are investing in the growth of our business – hiring more people, expanding to bigger premises and bringing more helicopters into Australia. We are currently on a significant recruitment drive to fill approximately 50 vacant roles after having recruited 16 new people over the past 8 weeks in Perth, across our corporate head office, engineering and pilot staff. We expect to triple the size of our head office team in Western Australia over the next 12 months to service growth in Australia and across Southeast Asia,” he said.

Mr. Mullett also spoke of the company’s commitment to exploring the use of Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF), “using SAF will make a significant impact on our emissions. All of our helicopters are capable of using SAF and we are working hard with our suppliers and customers in the US to introduce SAF into the Gulf of Mexico where a supply network exists. We look forward to having SAF available in Australia in the future and more specifically in WA, and to working with our clients to introduce it fully in our operations.”

Cory Latiolais, who has taken on the role of Chief Operating Officer (COO) for the APAC region said that the company sees growth opportunities with energy clients working offshore in Australia; in supporting renewable energy investments such as offshore wind; in offering advanced helicopter maintenance capabilities; and in air medical and search-and-rescue in regional and remote communities.

“We regularly provide support to the Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) and recently completed a number of critical rescue operations.  We also see huge growth opportunities in the region in the provision of mining support, Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV) and sustainable aviation fuel (SAF),” he said.

At the opening of the new headquarters, Western Australia’s Minister for Mines and Petroleum, Energy, Corrective Services and Industrial Relations, Hon. Bill Johnston welcomed PHI into the region.

“We [Western Australia] are the logical base for people in the energy sector – and we’ve watched the growth of PHI here in Western Australia as you’ve picked up new contracts over the last few years. We’re really appreciative of the fact that you’ve decided to come here to Perth for your regional headquarters,” said Minister Johnston.

PHI Aviation has been operating in Western Australia since 1980 and currently has operating bases in Broome and Karratha, with Exmouth due to start in early 2023.  It has also operated in Onslow, Port Hedland and Truscott.  Our customers in Western Australia include INPEX, Shell, Woodside, BHP, Santos, ENI and Western Gas.