About Aberdair Aviation
Vision
Mission
“To deliver safe and secure air transport, as well as a range of value-adding aviation support services, to our clients in Africa and beyond”
Values
Safety
We do not compromise on Safety
People
Our People are our most valued asset and we will continue to invest in their future development
Professionalism
As an African operator we constantly strive to implement international industry best-practice and ensure that we apply the highest Quality standards to all that we do
Respect
We respect our colleagues at Aberdair Aviation, our clients and stakeholders, the varied cultures in which we work and the environment around us
Innovation
We constantly challenge ourselves to do things better, even if that means doing things differently
Company History
Aberdair Aviation was first incorporated in Kenya in 2002 by the father and son team of Freddie and Adrian Wilcox. The company name is a play on the spelling of ‘Aberdare’ and the Aberdare Mountains in Kenya.
Freddie Wilcox had established Autair Helicopters East Africa as the first commercial helicopter operator in Nairobi in the late 1960s. Autair was the Bell Helicopter agent in East Africa for over 30 years and Freddie was instrumental in the development of the local helicopter industry and the establishment of the Police Airwings in Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania.
Autair Helicopters supported a wide range of clients ranging from oil companies who were conducting the initial seismic surveys in East Africa through to flying for the major Works teams during the epic Safari Rally of the 1970s and 1980s.
Autair Helicopters was sold in 1996 and, following Adrian’s return to Kenya in 2001 after 5 years as a graduate trainee at British Airways’ headoffice in London, Freddie and Adrian established Aberdair Aviation. The company was initially focused on the sale and leasing of general aviation fixed wing and helicopter aircraft. In 2005 Aberdair submitted an application to the Kenya Civil Aviation Authority for its Air Operators Certificate (AOC) with an initial Embraer EMB-110 ‘Bandeirante’ (registration 5Y-FWA) having been purchased to support the operations … and Aberdair’s first AOC was issued on May 2nd 2006.
Operations expanded thereafter including the commencement of what would be a 12-year contract with Oil Spill Response supporting their airborne dispersant spraying and surveillance capability in West Africa.
Helicopter operations were added to Aberdair’s Kenyan AOC capability in 2011 whereafter the company focused on the support of a new wave of resource-sector exploration contracts across East Africa.
To date Aberdair Aviation Group has operated contracts in over 30 African countries as well as in countries as far afield as Singapore and Iraq with the company’s fleet of fixed wing and helicopter aircraft being operated across its primary AOC operations in Kenya and Ghana. There is a very clear focus on the company’s fleet strategy in order to meet our target clients’ requirements now and into the future. Coupled with this, Aberdair Aviation looks forward to expanding into new markets in Africa and beyond, whilst also embracing new aviation technologies such as UAVs as well as hydrogen / hydrogen electric powerplant innovations.
