Keith Storey, CFO for Colorado and Nevada-based Rotor Leasing (Static 1 and 3), will be the first one to tell you that the name of the company is a little bit of a misnomer. In fact, the company does not lease helicopters at all today. Instead, the company, with its own facilities, including a helipad at 7,300 feet agl (66CO), researches, imports and restores French, British and Irish SA341 Gazelles and SA365 Dauphin helicopters in the U.S.
“Our research and acquisition partners are Regaviation in Europe and Africa, UKRTransaero in Ukraine and Eastern Europe and Freight International Transport in South and Central America,” said Storey, who we found polishing his personal ship in the busy exhibit hall at Heli-Expo 2014. The company brought two Gazelles, one still in its military olive drab that could be had for around $300,000. Storey’s personal ship sported a ceramic exhaust on the Turbomeca Astazou IIIc engine, as well as full leather interior and a Garmin glass in the updated instrument panel. It burns 32 gph of jet A, but, according to Storey, “it costs half what an R66 costs, and I think it’s twice the helo!”
