Revenue during the quarter dropped 23.88 percent to $56.29 million from $73.94 million in the previous year period. Operating margin for the quarter stood at negative 2.52 percent as compared to a positive 6.47 percent for the previous year period.

Operating loss for the quarter was $1.42 million, compared with an operating income of $4.78 million in the previous year period.

However, the adjusted EBITDA for the quarter stood at $9.38 million compared with $17.31 million in the prior year period. At the same time, adjusted EBITDA margin contracted 673 basis points in the quarter to 16.67 percent from 23.41 percent in the last year period.

"Despite the very challenging industry conditions prevalent in 2016, Era’s efforts to maximize fleet utilization, control costs, proactively manage capital commitments, realize value from the sale of underutilized equipment and protect our balance sheet resulted in the generation of over $45 million of net cash flows from operating and investing activities and a $55 million reduction in net debt," said Chris Bradshaw, president and chief executive officer of Era Group Inc. "In addition, we believe the recent amendment to our credit facility helps ensure continued access to liquidity for the duration of the downturn and enhances our operational and strategic flexibility."

Debt comes down
Era Group Inc. has recorded a decline in total debt over the last one year. It stood at $232.28 million as on Dec. 31, 2016, down 13.29 percent or $35.59 million from $267.86 million on Dec. 31, 2015. Total debt was 24.32 percent of total assets as on Dec. 31, 2016, compared with 26.60 percent on Dec. 31, 2015. Debt to equity ratio was at 0.50 as on Dec. 31, 2016, down from 0.57 as on Dec. 31, 2015.