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The story
The airline was established in 1975 and started operations in March 1976. It began with helicopter operations and added fixed-wing aircraft in 1991. A third-party maintenance facility was opened in 1994. It is owned by Abu Dhabi nationals (70%) and the Abu Dhabi government (30%) and has 960 employees (at March 2013).
By 1983, the fleet size had increased to a total of 34 aircraft, flying over 38,800 hours annually, an average of over 100 hours per day. In 1985, Abu Dhabi Aviation was authorised to operate fixed-wing aircraft and to conduct third-party aircraft maintenance. In 1991, Abu Dhabi Aviation was awarded its first fixed-wing aircraft contract. This contract, with the largest oil company in the UAE, is now operated with three new DHC-8 aircraft.
Abu Dhabi Aviation has completed contracts throughout the Middle East and beyond, including Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait, Sultanate of Oman, Republic of Yemen, Spain, Pakistan, Eritrea, Brazil, Papua New Guinea, Australia, India, Afghanistan and Indonesia. Seismic surveys in search of oil and other natural resources have been completed using specialist underslung load techniques using a 100 feet (30 m) "long line", thus enabling the helicopter to remain clear of obstructions. The same technique has been used to conduct other work, such as erecting pylons, as part of government schemes to bring electricity to remote areas, and construction of microwave towers.
ADA has operated one Bell 212 helicopter in support of long-term contracts for a major oil company in the Republic of Yemen. The company has a firefighting contract in Spain.
ADA is approaching 1,000,000 flight hours in helicopters and over 55,000 hours in fixed-wing aircraft. Bell Helicopter awarded Abu Dhabi Aviation with a plaque to commemorate the completion of 700,000 helicopter hours. The high intensity of offshore oil support work has required an annual average of approximately 200,000 landings and take-offs. In an average month, 15,000 passengers and 162,000 kg (357,000 lb) of freight are transferred to and from offshore areas. In addition, over 11,000 passengers are moved between offshore locations.
From Wikipedia’s article on Abu Dhabi Aviation, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.5