Columbia Helicopters, Inc.

Columbia Helicopters, Inc., a for-profit heavy-lift helicopter operator and maintenance, repair, and overhaul (MRO) service provider headquartered in Aurora, Oregon, delivers aerial firefighting, cargo transport, personnel transport, and specialized rotary-wing component overhaul services to the federal government as a prime contractor (97% of recent awards) operating full-and-open across all federal customers with no socioeconomic set-asides. The company competes across civilian and defense accounts, generating combined potential value of $10.31 billion across 424 awards over the source period, with 18 percent obligated. Activity has remained steady to strong across recent years—52 awards in 2022, with 2024–2026 averaging 20 awards annually—though highly concentrated in two customer agencies that account for 98 percent of potential value.

The National Interagency Fire Center (NIFC), administered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service, and the U.S. Army's Aviation and Missile Command represent the overwhelming majority of Columbia Helicopters' federal business by dollar magnitude. The Army Central Command and United States Transportation Command anchored the largest potential values: a $3.69 billion customer account and a $5.71 billion account, respectively, driven by a small number of delivery orders under the Worldwide Airlift Services Program 135 (WASP 135) single-award indefinite delivery contract. NIFC, by contrast, anchors steady, recurring work through the Type 1 Helicopter Support Services 2025-2034 contract ($50 million ceiling through December 2034), under which Columbia Helicopters places call-when-needed delivery orders for aerial firefighting, reconnaissance, and personnel transport across April-to-November wildfire seasons. A $14.2 million Naval Special Warfare Command delivery order for Philippines airlift support (August 2026) and a $85.89 million Naval Special Warfare Command WASP 135 delivery order (March 2023) demonstrate Columbia Helicopters' position on global airlift vehicles alongside its domestic firefighting footprint. The Army's aviation modernization programs—including the CH-47F Modernized Cargo Helicopter (CH-47F Block II) major defense acquisition program—represent recurring sustainment revenue. Columbia Helicopters holds single-award indefinite delivery contracts worth $54 million (aft rotor head overhaul through September 2028), $33.5 million (forward rotor head maintenance through August 2028), and several smaller component-overhaul vehicles ($8.3 million for drive shaft assemblies, $4.4 million for shaft drive assemblies, $1.75 million for coupling drive shaft assemblies, and others), all supporting CH-47 Chinook component-level maintenance in Aurora, Oregon.

Recent capability work demonstrates the dual focus. On the firefighting side, Columbia Helicopters has executed 24 delivery orders under the Type 1 Helicopter Support Services NIFC contract since 2025, ranging from $56 thousand to $1.47 million per order for seasonal aerial firefighting, cargo placement, and personnel transport. A $1.25 million delivery order in October 2024 for Siuslaw log placement and a $603 thousand June 2023 order for aerial firefighting represent typical NIFC engagements. On the Army sustainment side, a $13.2 million August 2024 delivery order from Army Aviation and Missile Command for forward rotor head components supporting CH-47F Block II modernization and an $8.9 million August 2024 aft rotor head overhaul order exemplify the scale of component MRO work. A $245 thousand Naval Supply Systems Command Foreign Military Sales purchase order in September 2025 for a T58-GE-100 engine, and smaller Defense Logistics Agency Aviation purchase orders for helicopter components ($43 thousand for cooling air plates, $162 thousand for turbine disks, $111 thousand for disk and hub components) round out the portfolio.

The top parent vehicles confirm this dual-revenue model. The Basic Ordering Agreement 12024B20G5015 carries 46 task orders valued at $31.5 million—the highest vehicle task-order count, likely supporting recurring USDA or DOI work. The Type 1 Helicopter Support Services 2025-2034 IDIQ has generated 24 task orders ($14.2 million combined potential value). Smaller vehicles include an Indefinite Delivery Contract AG04T1C060029 (9 task orders, $657 thousand), supporting secondary forest-service or agency work. A Missouri National Guard multiple-award Blanket Purchase Agreement awarded November 2025 with a $999 thousand ceiling through October 2030 establishes a new vehicle for rotary-wing aircraft parts supply to Army National Guard Aviation Classification Repair Activity Depots across UH-60, CH-47, UH-72, and AH-64 platforms, signaling expansion into depot-level parts distribution alongside MRO services.

Columbia Helicopters subcontracts on foreign military sales and Army security assistance programs through primes including S & K Logistics Services LLC and S & K Federal Services LLC (repair of rotary wing heads, gas turbine aircraft engines, mechanical helicopter transmissions, and landing gear strut pistons as of October 2025), and Dyncorp International LLC (global aviation maintenance for Army Aviation and Missile Command field maintenance operations as of March 2024). The subcontract work represents 3 percent of the award count (12 sub awards) and centers on rotary-wing component repair and Army aviation field maintenance support.

Recompete exposure in the next 24 months stands at six awards with combined potential value of $19.1 million, a modest exposure relative to the total portfolio, reflecting the long-term nature of the Army indefinite delivery contracts (multiple through 2028) and the NIFC Type 1 contract running through 2034. Columbia Helicopters' category concentration aligns with its core business: nonscheduled chartered freight air transportation (133 awards), other aircraft parts and auxiliary equipment manufacturing (105 awards), support activities for forestry (35 awards), nonscheduled chartered passenger air transportation (27 awards), and aircraft engine and engine parts manufacturing (15 awards). The PSC distribution tracks identically, with 94 awards under natural resources/conservation forest-range fire suppression, 43 under other natural resources/conservation, 41 under helicopter rotor blade and drive mechanism components, 40 under passenger air charter, and 21 under airframe structural components.