The organisers of HeliRussia 2011 have announced that Sikorsky have taken some exhibition space at the event, representing the first time the US manufacturer has made a visible push into the country in many years.  Although no details are yet being made available, it is expected that their main push will be to make some inroads into the corporate and offshore markets with the S76 after letting the other major manufacturers have their own way for a number of years.  Eurocopter has an established office in Russia and recently announced the sale of 15 EC175s to UTair for offshore work.  In the corporate market, both Bell and Eurocopter have had notable successes, so Sikorsky is really going to HeliRussia to play “catch up”.

It is expected that Sikorsky will host a reception event on their stand/booth in honour of their Russian-born founder, and with his son Sergei Sikorsky present.