Papillon marks 50th anniversary with golden helicopter

Papillon’s 54 Grand Canyon touring helicopters all are numbered starting from one so that staff can track them.

Except “50” was reserved.

Until Thursday.

That’s when the longest running helicopter touring company, based in Boulder City, celebrated its 50th anniversary with a golden helicopter bearing the number 50 to mark five decades of ferrying passengers for tours of the landscape marvel.

It was a festive day for family-run Papillon, which traces its start to founder Elling Halvorson, a construction company owner who ferried workers and clients via helicopter to his 13.5-mile water pipeline work sites that he ran in the Grand Canyon. The sights from the helicopter were so gorgeous and inspiring that Halvorson decided to start a business using helicopters as a tour vehicle.

But the helicopter touring operation, which attracts 600,000 passengers a year, lost money its first four years, Halvorson recalled.

“We had to learn how to market Las Vegas,” Papillon’s patriarch said.

Papillon Helicopters general manager and Halvorson’s grandson, Geoff Edlund, chimed in, “Once we figured it out, it went kaboom.”

At first, Halvorson ran the helicopter business from the Grand Canyon’s South Rim before expanding operations to McCarran International Airport in 1997. The business began operating out of Boulder City Airport in 2004 and opened a 45,000-square-foot base there in 2009. It’s only a half-hour helicopter ride from Boulder City to the Grand Canyon.

Halvorson said revenues picked up after 10 years when Papillon began using helicopters that could carry six passengers instead of four while maintaining about the same operating costs. The business also began soaring when he focused exclusively on the helicopter touring business and gave up his construction work.

Papillon also began marketing to foreign countries, such as United Kingdom, Germany, France, Italy, Japan and Australia.

That strategy has served Papillon well, as 70 percent of its customers are international and tour narration is in 16 languages.

Halvorson’s family runs the show. Daughter Brenda joined the company in 1986 and became CEO in 1993. Her son, Geoff, is GM, while her nephew, Jake Tomlin, is general manager of Grand Canyon Airlines, just one of several brands under the Papillon Group umbrella. Others include Grand Canyon Helicopters, Scenic Airlines and Grand Canyon Coaches.

“We’re not a transportation provider,” said Tomlin, a former Marine pilot. “We’re a bucket list provider. Passengers are usually experiencing the Grand Canyon for the first time.”

When Papillon started in 1965, the company ferried 1,000 annual tour passengers, who paid $39 each. These days, 600,000 passengers a year each pay $199.

The company’s growth meant that Papillon is now Boulder City’s biggest employer with 650 workers, including 200 pilots, the family said. Papillon competes against about five other helicopter touring companies.

To celebrate its 50th year, Papillon had its golden helicopter escorted by four company red helicopters flying in formation in Boulder City. Each of the five helicopters represented a decade — or a total of 50 years. The golden helicopter has never been seen before Thursday, except at a trade show.

Halvorson said even after 50 years, flying above the Grand Canyon is still a thrill.

“The canyon never gets old to anyone,” he said. “It’s always changing.”

Contact reporter Alan Snel at asnel@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-5273. Find him on Twitter: @BicycleManSnel