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MD Helicopters, Inc. is building upon a tradition of excellence that is unmatched in the aerospace industry.
Our high-performance helicopters have long been the products of choice for discriminating buyers. Our family of helicopters - the MD 500® series helicopter, MD 600N® series helicopter and MD Explorer® helicopter - is synonymous with the world's best rotorcraft.
We Offer the best-quality, best-value helicopters in the world; provide state-of-the-art technology to enhance operator value; offer total support of our products wherever and whenever it's needed; and keep adapting our organization and the way we do business to make sure we continue to build upon that tradition of excellence and meet our customer¡¯s high expectations for quality, service and support.
HistoryMD Helicopters traces its roots back more than 50 years to when Hughes Tool Company, Aircraft Division first started to develop "light helicopters" in 1955. After years of successfully manufacturing such models as the Hughes 269, 300, 500 and 530F for civil use and TH-55 Osage, OH-6 Cayuse and highly successful AH 64-Apache, Hughes sold its helicopters business to McDonnell Douglas in 1984. For the most part, McDonnell Douglas stayed true to the original Hughes designs and nomenclatures.
In 1997, McDonnell Douglas merged with Boeing to become the Boeing Company.
In 1999, Boeing sold the former MD commercial helicopter lines to MD Helicopter Holdings Inc., an indirect subsidiary of the Dutch company, RDM Holding Inc. Included in the sale were the MD 500E and MD 530F single-engine helicopters with conventional tail rotors, the MD 520N and MD 600N single-engine helicopters with the Boeing exclusive NOTAR® no tail rotor system for anti-torque and directional control, and the MD Explorer series of twin-engine, eight-place helicopters.
Boeing maintained the AH-64 line of helicopters, and rights to the NOTAR system.
After struggling with commercial performance, MD Helicopters Holdings Inc. was purchased in July, 2005 by Patriarch Partners, LLC, an investment fund. The company was recapitalized as an independent company, MD Helicopters, Inc. MD Helicopters is based in Mesa, Arizona and the current product line includes the MD 500E, MD 530F, MD 520N, MD 600N and the MD Explorer.
TodayUnder the direction of CEO Lynn Tilton, MD Helicopters, Inc. has enjoyed a successful turn around going from as few as 7 helicopters manufactured in 2005 to 52 in 2008. The forecast for 2009 calls for as many as 75 helicopters delivered which would be the best performance for MD Helicopters since 1992. And the outlook for 2010 is for continued significant growth - the current backlog is strong and the forecast calls for the production of as many as 140 aircraft a year by 2012.
With over 2,800 aircraft currently in use around the world, MD Helicopters is a substantial company by any measure. Fleet users include the Korean Armed Forces, US Special Operations, Japanese Self Defense Forces, Jordanian Armed Forces, Turkish National Police, Houston Police, Columbus Police, CALSTAR, Argentina Armed Forces, the Italian government, the Finnish Armed Forces and many others.
Internally the company is focused on internal process improvements, supply chain product flow, and fuselage ramp-up. There has been a significant emphasis on the sales of Spares (2007 revenues were up 45% over 2006) and the repair and overhaul business (2007 revenues were up 25% over 2006.)
Part sales are also showing a significant increase in orders per month.
Perception of the company is improving as well with customer confidence on the rise. For the second year-in-a-row, MD Helicopters earned a second place ranking in the Aviation International News 2008 Helicopters Product Support Survey. MD Helicopters¡¯ overall rankings improved to 6.78 from 6.69 in the 2007 survey results. MD received the top rankings in Parts Availability, AOG Response, Cost of Parts and Overall Aircraft Reliability. MD also made improvements in Technical Reps category, maintaining a number two ranking in this category, Cost of Parts and Authorized Service Centers.
MD Helicopters, Inc. is proud of its AOG (Aircraft on the Ground) record, going from as high as 240 three years ago to zero (0) during several months of 2008. Over 85% of AOG¡¯s are handled within one day and 97% in less than one week.
Through all the changes over the years, MD Helicopters has enjoyed an almost cult-like status with its customers and employees. It is viewed as a small private company with lots of heart and soul capable of delivering extremely good products. MD Helicopters are known for their speed, strength and ability to fly "hot and high."
TomorrowMD Helicopters will renew its focus to differentiate itself from other Helicopter manufacturers and to improve by maintaining profitability while filling the needs of our operators, regardless of market segment. Our marketing goal is to position MD Helicopters as the "First Choice" manufacturer throughout the world.
Looking at the helicopter marketplace and planning our place in industry growth for 2009 and beyond is a tremendous challenge with potential for tremendous opportunity. We can think of no better place to begin the journey than right where we are; MD Helicopters, American Pride Rising to New Heights.