Silver State Helicopters, doing helicopter flight training in 34 cities in 16 states sought Chapter 7 Bankruptcy relief protection this week, abruptly closing down operations, and leaving more than 2,500 students and more than 750 employees in the lurch. Headquartered in Nevada, Silver State operated the largest fleet of Robinson R22 helicopters and had a nearby operation at Camarillo, California airport CMA. One student pilot interviewed by the local press stated he had paid $46,000 of an 18 month $70,000 Commercial Pilot program and was due to SOLO just last Monday but was called by his instructor on Super Bowl Sunday to say the school had closed and 8 local instructors had been laid off.
Students taking out loans for their training are "devastated", but can file claims with the Bankruptcy Court. A local bankruptcy attorney stated that particularly in Chapter 7 cases, "creditors get less than 10 cents on the dollar".
The bankruptcy petition estimated that Silver State has more than 5,000 creditors, as well as from $10 million to $50 million in liabilities. A New York investment firm that purchased 60% of the company last year expects to lose the $30 million it invested in Silver State Helicopters.
See: http://www.silverstatehelicopters.com
