CHC Group Ltd. filed for chapter 11 protection as one of the world’s largest helicopter operators joined a slew of oil-field services companies caught by the downturn in global energy prices, the Wall Street Journal reported today. The filing came just days after a fatal crash of one of its helicopters in Norway forced the company to ground much of its fleet. CHC is one of two global companies alongside Houston-based Bristow Group Inc. that dominate the business of ferrying workers and cargo offshore for energy companies and have been forced to shrink and cut costs. CHC operated a fleet of 231 helicopters on Jan. 31 and had been exploring a debt-restructuring for several months even before the April 29 crash of an Airbus Group SE EC225 helicopter. The accident killed its two pilots and 11 oil workers flying back to the Norwegian mainland, and led regulators in the U.K. and Norway to ground the EC225, a workhorse helicopter with a history of technical problems. CHC leased 157 helicopters and operated 42 EC225s, and had orders with manufacturers including Airbus, the Sikorsky unit of Lockheed Martin Corp. and Leonardo SpA’s AgustaWestland.
