Babcock buys helicopter firm in £920m deal

The acquisition of Avincis enables Babcock to access new markets and customers

Babcock International has acquired helicopter services company Avincis.

Avincis, which operates as Bond Aviation in the UK, provides helicopter and fixed-wing services for medical, search-and-rescue, firefighting and civil protection in Europe and offshore crew-change services to the oil and gas industry in the North Sea.

Peter Rogers, Babcock chief executive, said: "The acquisition of Avincis meets Babcock's strategic objectives as it brings into the Babcock Group a market-leading business, delivering mission critical services and complex engineering support to blue-chip customers in multiple geographies."

The £920 million acquisition comes with £705 million of net debt and potential damages claims related to the Glasgow helicopter crash in November, in which Police Scotland's helicopter leased from Bond crashed into the Clutha pub, killing 10 people.

James Drummond, chief executive of Avincis, added: "Babcock is a great strategic and cultural fit for Avincis. Our global business has grown significantly over the past few years, and joining forces with Babcock will allow the strengthened group to access new markets and customers, and build on an already impressive order intake."

London-headquartered Avincis runs a fleet of 356 aircraft, of which 196 are owned by the company, and operates in 10 countries. It has about 3,000 employees.