Silver State Helicopter school declares bankruptcy. Closes schools in Helena that had moved from Butte

Silver State Helicopters (web site has been deactivated), a flight training school that closed its Butte facility last year, declared bankruptcy Monday, leaving students in a jam and employees jobless.

The company shut down its 30-plus flight academies in 15 states Feb. 3, according to a press release on its Web site, and filed Chapter 7 bankruptcy in Las Vegas, home of its headquarters.

Silver State says it owes from $10 million to $50 million in unpaid debts and estimates its assets at $50,000 or less. Silver State left about 5,000 creditors nationwide, with approximately 60 in the Butte area.

By Holly Michels

Full Story: http://www.mtstandard.com/articles/2008/02/06/butte/hjjbjhjdjiibec.txt

***

Flight school closes without warning

By JOHN HARRINGTON – Independent Record

Students of Silver State Helicopters are worried they may be out tens of thousands of dollars after the flight school abruptly ceased operations at dozens of locations across the country Tuesday, including a school in Helena.

Las Vegas-based Silver State announced on its Web site that the company has filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy protection. A woman answering the phone at the local school referred calls to the regional general manager in Washington state. He didn’t return calls for comment by the Independent Record, nor did the company’s head office.

Full Story: http://helenair.com/articles/2008/02/06/local/80lo_080206_helicopters.txt

***

Silver State Helicopters lawsuit Witnesses http://verticalreference.com/helicopterforum/index.php?showtopic=5058

Wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Silver_State_Helicopters