B Ravi Pillai, the chairman of RP Group has carved his named into the history books by becoming the first ever Indian to own the luxury Airbus H 145 helicopter. Almost 1500 units of these helicopters sold and B Ravi Pillai is now one of the owners who shelled out INR 100 Crores for it.
The chopper was delivered by Airbus themselves to Mr. Pillai to his home state of Kerala, in the beautiful coastal city of Kovalam. The helicopter took its passengers on its debut trip from Kovalam to RP Group owned resort The Raviz Ashtamudi.
The man ranked as the fourth most powerful Indian in the middle east by Arabian Business, worth $2.5 billion USD, now owns the only airbus D3 chopper in India. Not only has he set his name in the Indian history books, but also Asia as a whole by purchasing the first ever five-bladed H145 helicopter of the continent.
Being a billionaire, employing over 70,000 people around the world, setting his office in UAE, and running his businesses that span from South Asia all the way to Middle East, you’d have expected him to already own a fleet of helicopters. But, Mr. Pillai is someone who prefers to stay out of the limelight, and focus on his work in a diligent manner. He also well known for his philanthropic work even introducing a Covid assistance fund in 2021, injecting RS. 17 crores into it.
The helicopter can host up to eight passengers and has a range of 351 nautical miles which translates to 650 kilometres and can even fly at heights of 20,000 feet above sea level! Overall, the H 145 chopper blows its competition out of the water. With its high-altitude capability and its overall impressive agility, the H 145 is a wise choice for public service missions and emergency medical services.
The air vehicle is even at its pinnacle in terms of safety with one of its main features being absorbing seats which maximises safety for its passengers on the unlikely event of an accident or emergency.
A top RP Group official has said that the purchase of this helicopter is the start of the boom of the tourism industry not only in Kerala, but India as a whole. This is because RP Group possess a chain of luxury resorts across the state and it will be utilized to transport guests to various tourist attractions in the state.
