NHV Group Offshore Operations at Blackpool Airport

At the close of 2020, NHV Group, a leading European provider of business-to-business helicopter services headquartered in Ostend, Belgium, established a new operational base at Blackpool Airport. The move followed the award of a major contract with Spirit Energy in May of that year, enabling NHV to assume responsibility for passenger transfer and offshore crew-change flights in the East Irish Sea. The company formally commenced operations on 1 December 2020, taking over duties previously managed by Babcock MCS.

From its Blackpool base, NHV deploys AW169 helicopters—modern, twin-engine aircraft within the 4.6 to 4.8-tonne class—renowned for their reliability and adaptability under challenging maritime and meteorological conditions. The fleet also includes the larger AW139 model, which provides additional range and load capacity. These aircraft support the transportation of personnel to and from offshore installations, forming an essential part of the regional energy sector’s logistics network.

NHV Group operates from multiple locations across Europe and Africa, supplying aviation services to the energy industry, including oil, gas and increasingly the renewables sector. Its activities extend beyond transport alone: the company’s maritime division provides harbour-pilot transfer operations and other precision maritime services, while its engineering arm delivers certified maintenance and technical support both for its own fleet and for third-party clients in civil and defence aviation. As an accredited training organisation under European Aviation Safety Agency Part 147 and Approved Training Organisation (ATO) standards, NHV also invests heavily in professional instruction, ensuring a continuing pipeline of skilled engineers and flight crews. The company’s fleet—comprising around thirty-five helicopters—represents a significant concentration of high-value aviation assets dedicated to safe, efficient and technically advanced offshore operations.

The establishment of NHV’s base at Blackpool not only strengthened the airport’s role in the North West’s offshore-energy infrastructure but also reaffirmed the region’s enduring connection to the history and development of British aviation.