NYC Helicopter Firm Adds GDSs, Corp. Contracts

Manhattan, N.Y.-based US Helicopter Corp., which became the only scheduled commercial airline helicopter service in the United States following its March 2006 launch, continues to expand its presence in the business travel arena, including signing corporate contracts.

US Helicopter this year became listed in four global distribution systems: Sabre and Worldspan in May, Amadeus in July and in Galileo last month. "We're in these four GDSs because a high percentage of business travel is booked by corporate travel agencies that submit an activity report either every week or every month," said US Helicopter senior vice president and chief marketing officer Donal McSullivan.

"The effect of being in the MIS function of each system's uniform method of reporting travel activity, as a recognized and approved vendor, means we're part of the customized booking tools that corporations use," said McSullivan. "We also do a solid 40 percent in connection with incoming overseas business travelers coming to Manhattan, so that's another important reason for being in the GDSs."

US Helicopter operates 325 weekly shuttle flights to and from the Downtown Manhattan Heliport, the Atlantic Metroport at East 34th St., John F. Kennedy International Airport and Newark Liberty International Airport. The company also flies between the Downtown heliport and Bridgeport Sikorsky Memorial Airport, which serves Connecticut's Fairfield and New Haven counties.

To date, McSullivan said, "business is going nicely, with numbers growing weekly, and, as part of that, there are a number of corporate contracts structured with volume discount deals, but they're not huge because our rates are low to begin with at $159 from Downtown and $169 from Midtown." A $99 one-way fare from Manhattan to the Hamptons, popular with business travelers on weekends, he said, will be in effect until the end of October.

Demand is high, he said, with repeat business—especially by seasoned travelers—at between 50 and 60 percent. "Our competition doesn't come from other helicopter companies but from New York's black car services. We're priced just a bit more than them, but we're a better value in terms of convenience and time saved," he said.

The company, McSullivan said, has a good working relationship with partner Continental Airlines at Newark airport and now—after switching from American Airlines—with Delta Air Lines at JFK. "Delta is growing rapidly as that airport's largest international carrier," McSullivan said.

US Helicopter plans to add more Sikorsky S-76 helicopters shortly, and new routes could include LaGuardia Airport, but "we're still working that out," he said.

Port Washington, N.Y.-based airline industry analyst and R.W. Mann & Co. president Robert Mann said of US Helicopter's GDS participation, "In going after corporate, they've chosen to broaden the methods they use to distribute, and to broaden their service to incorporate seasonal flying out to the Hamptons. You can go bare and can generate an efficient demand for your service, but, as JetBlue found out, you're going to have to be in a GDS because that's what's on people's desktops. At US Helicopter's price point, it's an affordable proposition for them, even with the attendant cost. It makes sense for them to be there," consultant Mann said.

New York travel management company Valerie Wilson Travel co-owner and co-president Jennifer Wilson-Buttigieg categorized her company's business relationship with US Helicopter, as "crawl, walk, run," adding that it began well before US Helicopter's official launch.

"Valerie Wilson Travel firmly believes in preferred partnerships, and, as such, we have unique corporate agreements for all of our customers with US Helicopter," said Wilson-Buttigieg, who has flown the service to Newark. "The discount is approximately a 7 percent to 13 percent discount, based on the specific departure location and the airport location. In addition, our partnership with Delta Air Lines and our proprietary, negotiated business class fares afford us the opportunity to have US Helicopter's flights included in the price of international business class fares on a complimentary basis."

"You land right at the Continental terminal and right at the Delta terminal at JFK, so it's a very easy sell for clients using those airlines, a bit harder if they have to switch airlines, but not that difficult because of AirTrain at both airports," she said.

Wilson-Buttigieg estimated that travelers from 10 percent of Valerie Wilson corporate clients—often Wall Street investment bankers who use the Downtown Heliport and those in the fashion, pharmaceutical and consulting fields, who fly from 34th St.—are "trying this tremendous time-saving opportunity."

The service is well-priced, Wilson-Buttigieg said, and works well for corporate travelers headed to a meeting, for example, for a day or two.

"It takes just five minutes to clear TSA security at the heliports and is simply a smarter, better use of travel time for time-starved business travelers," she said, adding that "our clients who try it once want to use it again."