Spanish helicopter operator Eliance files for preliminary creditor protection

Spanish helicopter operator and aerial services firm Eliance has filed for preliminary creditor protection.  

The move, which is one step short of placing the business under judiciary supervision, has been prompted by Eliance’s troubled financial situation, with reported short term liquidity issues. 

In the 2025 fiscal year, the helicopter operator doubled its net loss compared to the previous year, from €12 million to €24 million. Total revenue stood at approximately €54 million. 

The core business of Eliance, which had been expanding internationally since 2022 with the acquisition of aerial services operators in Italy and Croatia, is the operation of helicopters on behalf of governments for emergency services, firefighting and road monitoring. 

Among Eliance’s customers is Spain’s Directorate-General for Traffic (DGT), the government agency in charge of road traffic monitoring in areas of Spain outside of Catalonia, the Basque Country and Navarre. 

In September 2025, Eliance won a €51 million tender to operate the DGT’s helicopter fleet. However, according to Spanish media reports, the company’s financial difficulties have led to several of those helicopters being grounded, leaving large parts of the country’s road network without effective aerial coverage. 

A few months earlier, in February 2026, Eliance a separate contract with the Catalan government was rescinded due to alleged breaches of the service agreement. Eliance, which used to operate two of the four medical helicopters used by Catalonia’s medical emergencies service, was accused of failing to meet fleet availability requirements and to provide replacements for grounded helicopters when needed. Even prior to that, in March 2025, the region of Galicia, in northwestern Spain, also terminated a contract with Eliance to provide emergency services and fined the firm €145,000 for similar reasons. 

Over the past two years, Eliance has also seen changes in both its ownership and its top management. In April 2025, Swiss Life Asset Managers acquired a majority stake in Eliance. Three months later, in July 2025, the company secured a €190 million credit facility from Infranity, an infrastructure investment manager that is part of Generali Investments, the asset management arm of the Italian insurer Generali. Then, in March 2026, the new owners replaced chief executive officer (CEO) Juan Carlos Martínez with Fernando Gallardo, who had until then been the group’s chief financial officer (CFO). 

According to the Spanish media, Eliance’s management has already informed staff of the situation and of the fact that, while there is an interest in carrying on operations, the future of the company depends on the outcome of negotiations with its creditors. 

AeroTime reached out to Eliance for comment.

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