HOUSTON and BRISTOL, England, Sept. 21, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Bristow Group Inc. (NYSE: VTOL), the world's leading global provider of vertical flight solutions to government and civil organizations, and Vertical Aerospace Group Ltd ("Vertical"), a British engineering and aeronautical business pioneering zero-emissions aviation, today announced a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) under which the two firms will cooperate on the certification, operational planning and potential purchase of up to 50 eVTOL aircraft. 

Bristow's pre-order of 25 aircraft, along with the option for an additional 25, builds on Vertical's world-leading pre-order book of up to 1,000 aircraft. Along with conditional pre-orders from American Airlines, Virgin Atlantic and Avolon, this announcement illustrates the sector-wide confidence in Vertical as a leading designer and manufacturer of eVTOL aircraft: the VA-X4. Vertical's four-passenger, one pilot VA-X4 is expected to have speeds of up to 200 mph (174 knots), a range of more than 100 miles (161+ kilometres), near silent when in flight with zero emissions and low cost per passenger mile.

"Our MOU with Vertical allows us to build upon our leadership position in the vertical transportation market for the past 70+ years and now sets the stage for the disruptive advantages of the VA-X4 with its zero carbon emissions and low operating costs for passenger transport. Our expansion into these new and existing geographic markets with sustainable, innovative and efficient vertical lift and aerial transport services will offer passengers superior regional air mobility solutions," said Bristow President and Chief Executive Officer Chris Bradshaw. "As the global leader in vertical lift, Bristow's operational expertise and efficiency, supported by the trust and confidence of our customers, can safely bring eVTOL aircraft into the market."

"Bristow's global expertise and reach means it is the perfect partner for Vertical as we seek to pioneer the transition to zero emissions flight. We look forward to working with Bristow and accelerating the commercial operation of eVTOLs," said Stephen Fitzpatrick, Founder and CEO of Vertical Aerospace.

Under the MOU, the two companies have agreed to develop a joint working group to collaborate on the following areas: regulatory and airspace; demand, fleet size, spare parts and infrastructure; potential customers; and public acceptance and environmental requirements.

Vertical has developed the VA-X4, a piloted electric, zero carbon operating emissions, vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) aircraft capable of carrying four passengers with a top speed of up to 200 mph (174 knots) and a range of 100+ miles (161+ kilometres). Click this image to download a high resolution version.

Forward Looking Statements Disclosure

This press release contains "forward-looking statements." Forward-looking statements represent Bristow Group Inc.'s (the "Company") current expectations or forecasts of future events. Forward-looking statements generally can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as "may," "will," "expect," "intend," "estimate," "anticipate," "believe," "project," or "continue," or other similar words. These statements are made under the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, reflect management's current views with respect to future events and therefore are subject to significant risks and uncertainties, both known and unknown. Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, such forward-looking statements include statements regarding the capabilities, development, certification, marketing, and future operations of Vertical's VA-X4, the Company's purchase of aircraft from Vertical, and the anticipated benefits of the collaboration between the Company and Vertical. The Company's actual results may vary materially from those anticipated in forward-looking statements.

The Company disclaims any obligation or undertaking to provide any updates or revisions to any forward-looking statement to reflect any change in the Company's expectations or any change in events, conditions or circumstances on which the forward-looking statement is based that occur after the date hereof. You should not place undue reliance on our forward-looking statements because the matters they describe are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other unpredictable factors, many of which are beyond our control. Our forward-looking statements are based on the information currently available to us and speak only as of the date hereof. New risks and uncertainties arise from time to time, and it is impossible for us to predict these matters or how they may affect us. We have included important factors in the section entitled "Risk Factors" in the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2021 (the "Annual Report") which we believe over time, could cause our actual results, performance or achievements to differ from the anticipated results, performance or achievements that are expressed or implied by our forward-looking statements. You should consider all risks and uncertainties disclosed in the Annual Report and in our filings with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC"), all of which are accessible on the SEC's website at www.sec.gov.

About Bristow Group

Bristow Group Inc. is the leading global provider of innovative and sustainable vertical flight solutions. Bristow primarily provides aviation services to a broad base of major integrated, national and independent offshore energy companies. Bristow provides commercial search and rescue (SAR) services in several countries and public sector SAR services in the United Kingdom (U.K.) on behalf of the Maritime & Coastguard Agency (MCA). Additionally, the Company offers ad hoc helicopter and fixed wing transportation services. Bristow currently has customers in Australia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Guyana, India, Mexico, Nigeria, Norway, Spain, Suriname, Trinidad, the U.K. and the U.S. To learn more, visit our website at www.bristowgroup.com.

About Vertical Aerospace

Vertical Aerospace is pioneering electric aviation. The company was founded in 2016 by Stephen Fitzpatrick, an established entrepreneur best known as the founder of the Ovo Group, a leading energy group and Europe's largest independent energy retailer. Over the past five years, Vertical has focused on building the most experienced and senior team in the eVTOL industry, who have over 1,200 combined years of experience, and have certified and supported over 30 different civil and military aircraft and propulsion systems.

Vertical's unrivalled top-tier partner ecosystem is expected to de-risk operational execution and its pathway to certification, allow for a lean cost structure, and enable production at scale. Vertical has received conditional pre-orders for over 1,000 aircraft from American Airlines and Avolon, including a pre-order option from Virgin Atlantic and in doing so is creating multiple near term and actionable routes to market. Find out more, visit our website at https://www.vertical-aerospace.com.

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SOURCE Bristow Group