Hornsea One Chopper Squad Takes to the Air

CHC’s first flight for the initial phase of Ørsted’s Hornsea Project One offshore wind farm left the Humberside Airport, UK, on 24 January.

Working with Uni-Fly as a sub-contractor, CHC will deliver the six-year deal covering the construction phase, as well as the first five years of O&M of the wind farm.

This includes a transfer service to take people from shore to the wind farm, and also smaller helicopters to transfer people and tools between the turbines and substations.

A combination of Leonardo AW139 and AW169 helicopters will begin flying out of the Humberside heliport from April to support the construction and support phases of the project.

Both the services and operations for the contract will be based from Humberside, which is said to contribute to the expansion and development of the service base and surrounding area.

CHC’s Regional Director for Europe, Middle East and Africa, Mark Abbey, said: “We continue to invest in our Humberside facilities, our equipment and training to take on unique projects just like this one and are eager to show how our business and technical skills can support this mission. This also helps drive CHC’s long-term strategy to broaden our range of services to the energy market and continue to grow our renewables service alongside our oil and gas, and Search and Rescue service.”

Once commissioned in 2020, the 1.2GW Hornsea Project One will be the biggest offshore wind farm in the world, with 174 wind turbines rotating some 120km off Yorkshire.

“The Humber region is also benefitting greatly; we’re investing millions in building the largest ever offshore wind operations and maintenance hub here, bringing skilled jobs to the area and engaging with young people to inspire them into STEM subjects,” Duncan Clark, Hornsea Project One Programme Director, said.