Dublin-registered SkyConnect Leasing, the specialist helicopter leasing arm of Skyrise Aviation Group, has signed a long-term multi-aircraft lease agreement with Spain's Pegasus Aero Group for UH-60L Black Hawk helicopters for wildfire suppression, civil protection and emergency response across Europe and Latin America, with first deliveries scheduled from March 2027.

SkyConnect Leasing is a Dublin-registered specialist helicopter lessor established in September 2025 as the operational leasing arm of Skyrise Aviation Group, led by CEO Patrick Moulay. SkyConnect acquired twelve former US Army UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters from Prague-based Helicopter Alliance, sourced from the US Army's Black Hawk Exchange Sales and Transaction (BEST) programme.

For the 2026 European fire season, SkyConnect has deployed eight UH-60 variant Black Hawks across southern and central Europe under multi-year operator contracts. National Airways Corporation (NAC) acquired an undisclosed stake in SkyConnect in July 2026. Pegasus Aero Group is a Córdoba, Spain-based aerial work and emergency aviation operator.

The structural driver is Europe's escalating wildfire crisis creating a structural deficit in dedicated aerial firefighting capacity. The 2026 European fire season has been particularly severe, with the EU's Emergency Response Coordination Centre repeatedly identifying large-capacity firefighting helicopter availability as the primary constraint during multi-country fire events. Each modernised UH-60L can carry Bambi buckets or water tanks exceeding 4,000 litres per drop, making it the preferred platform for operators scaling aerial firefighting capability rapidly.

SkyConnect's leasing model addresses the access barrier directly: purchasing and maintaining a Black Hawk fleet requires capital and technical expertise that most European civil protection operators cannot sustain, whereas a multi-year lease with maintenance support provides immediate operational capability without balance sheet exposure.

For Ireland, SkyConnect's emergence demonstrates how Dublin's established aircraft leasing legal, regulatory and financial infrastructure is being applied to mission-critical rotorcraft, extending the Irish leasing model's reach from commercial aviation into emergency response markets.

Source: flyinginireland.com / helis.com / airmedandrescue.com / flightglobal.com