Rotex Helicopter AG

ROTEX Helicopter AG is an independent helicopter company founded in 1997 with the aim of offering professional, reliable service for medium weight loads. Its head office is in Balzers, Liechtenstein, with further sites in Kägiswil (canton Obwalden) and Evionnaz (canton Valais). The owner and managing director is Urs Riebli. The company says it has more than 50,000 flight hours with its helicopters.

Services

• Forestry and special tree felling, with logging and grapple work and Helitrac support
• Assembly work
• Transport
• Firefighting and humanitarian aid

In forestry, the company reports that it can move up to 600 tonnes of timber per day at three locations, and that its helicopters have been used in forests for over 22 years. It sees the helicopter as a complement to conventional timber extraction rather than competition.

Fleet

The fleet consists of four Kaman K-Max K-1200 helicopters, built only for load transport. The single seat K-Max has an empty weight of 2,300 kg and a maximum lifting capacity of 2,722 kg, uses intermeshing main rotors, and the company quotes a noise level of 72 decibels. Ground equipment includes a Helitrac JCB Fastrac, tanker trucks and material vans.

History

For the first ten years a single K-Max was the only helicopter, and it flew over 14,000 hours. A second K-Max joined in January 2007 and another was added in 2017. The company says it has become the European market leader for transports up to 2,722 kg.