Story ID: 
Dart Acquires Aero Design
By: Mark Huber
Caption: Dart's acquisition of Aero Design boosts its portfolio to over 1,100 STCs. 
Word Count: 261
Dart Aerospace recently acquired key product lines and more than 30 STCs from Canadian helicopter mission equipment manufacturer Aero Design and its brand trademark. Terms were not disclosed. The deal follows Dart’s acquisition of Simplex Aerospace earlier last month. The pair of purchases expands Dart’s STC portfolio from 900 to more than 1,100. 

Aero Design manufactures helicopter cargo baskets and steps of various sizes and configurations for helicopters, including Bell, Airbus, Robinson, and MD Helicopters. It also provides the current replacement for the Bell 206/407 cyclic friction and the Bell 205/212/412 rappel mount and cargo deployment system. Dart’s key products include flotation systems, landing gear, interior and exterior accessories, cargo expansion, external loads, cable cutters, and filters.

“Acquiring Aero Design’s key product lines will enable Dart to offer baskets to a wider range of aircraft models and gain market share as the main provider of helicopter cargo expansion products worldwide,” said Dart CEO Alain Madore. “Alongside our current aerial utility and heli-ski product offering, we are also looking forward to furthering our footprint in the adventure tourism sector with the addition of Aero Design’s helicopter bicycle racks.”

Aero Design vice president Jeff Clarke added, “This transition to Dart is very positive as we have seen their desire to maintain our product lines and their plans to expand on them by integrating the best parts of both companies’ capabilities. I am confident that Aero Design's current and past partners will continue to see the quality and features they have come to expect moving forward.”