Chopper-sharing business takes off

Scaling back in a skittish economy means different things to different people. To some, it means skipping a meal so the kids can eat; to others it means letting go of the private jet. It’s the latter group of people Rob Newell is trying to reach.

Newell recently launched a helicopter-sharing business called BlackHawkCOE, based at the Coeur d’Alene Airport. Clients join for $35,000 apiece and schedule air time with the company’s pilot.

“It’s just like sharing a condominium,” Newell said. “There will be 16 partners altogether, and we have a hangar at the airport and a pilot, who’ll also act as a concierge.”

Owning part of the red Robinson R44 helicopter makes commuting between Spokane and Coeur d’Alene faster than by car.

“We can get you up to Schweitzer Mountain in 20 minutes or take you from Gozzer Ranch to the Spokane Airport in 25 minutes,” said Newell. “And we can set you down within 20 yards of the Alaska terminal.”

Newell has signed up several clients, including the Idaho Club at Sandpoint and Gozzer Ranch, and he expects to sell out fast – and not just to movie stars and retired millionaires.

Newell is also targeting real estate companies and developers.

“They may want to show clients the area from the air,” he said. “A trip that would take a whole day by car would take about an hour and a half in the helicopter.”

The $35,000 buys a share of the helicopter for three years. Then there’s a $750 monthly management fee, which covers insurance and hangar space. Finally, clients pay $180 for every hour they are actually flying.

“If you walk in off the street to rent a helicopter, it’s easily $600 an hour,” Newell said.

Colleen Damiano, senior vice president of human resources and operations for Apply2Save.com, a company that helps people avoid foreclosure, took a test flight Friday.

“We are interested, because we want to make sure that our people are actually picked up at the airport,” said Damiano, explaining that Apply2Save has offices across the country. “Sometimes limousine companies just don’t show. If you own part of the service you are using, that wouldn’t be a problem.”

Damiano liked the plush waiting room, which includes a fireplace and leather furniture, at the hangar.

“I’ve worked a lot with people in entertainment,” she said. “They are picky about presentation, and this place looks great.”

BlackHawkCOE may seem like an odd business to launch considering the country’s economic uncertainty, but Newell said many expensive toys, like his helicopter, are being unloaded at low prices.

“Brand new, the helicopter would be around $600,000,” Newell said. “We picked it up for about 30 percent less than that, and it barely had any fly time on it. The hangar was a good deal, too.”

Newell has a private pilot license, but his day job is as a venture capitalist.

His main business, Black Hawk Capital Managers LLC, of Hayden Lake, handles about $100 million in loans every year.

“All I’m hearing is doom and gloom about this economy,” he said.

“I think it’s fun to do something that’s bullish in a time like this.”