Revenues for the third quarter of 2008 were $73.0 million compared to $69.8 million for the second quarter of 2008 and $76.3 million for the third quarter of 2007. Net loss for the third quarter of 2008 was $0.9 million compared to net income of $4.3 million for the previous quarter and $11.1 million for the third quarter of 2007. The Company generated EBITDA of $12.9 million for the third quarter of 2008 compared to $20.6 million for the previous quarter and $28.3 million for the third quarter of 2007. The Company's fully diluted earnings per share for the quarter ended September 30, 2008, were a loss of $0.03 based on 26.4 million shares.

Results for the third quarter of 2008 were adversely affected by several non-recurring charges. These charges are primarily comprised of expenses related to the termination of the proposed merger with Allis-Chalmers Energy, Inc., the severance of our Senior VP of Rig Operations and a large workers' compensation claim. These items resulted in a pre-tax charge of approximately $9 million in the third quarter. Without these non-recurring charges, fully diluted earnings per share for the quarter would be $0.18.

Land Drilling

Average operating land rigs for the third quarter of 2008 were 42 compared to 45 for the previous quarter and 53 for the third quarter of 2007. The decrease from the previous quarter is due to rigs being winterized and refurbished for deployment to the Bakken Shale and rigs refurbished for deployment to Mexico. Revenue days for the quarter decreased to 3,208 from 3,355 for the previous quarter and decreased from 3,739 for the third quarter of 2007. Utilization for the third quarter of 2008 was 84% compared to 82% for the previous quarter and 76% for the third quarter of 2007. Average daily cash margins for our land drilling fleet for the quarter ended September 30, 2008, were $7,582 compared to $7,088 for the previous quarter and $8,373 for the third quarter of 2007.

Well Servicing

Average operating workover rigs for the third quarter of 2008 were 54 compared to 53 for the previous quarter and 35 for the third quarter of 2007. Revenue hours for the quarter decreased to 25,401 from 25,533 for the previous quarter and increased from 17,184 for the third quarter of 2007. Utilization for the third quarter of 2008 was 73% compared to 75% for the previous quarter and 78% for the third quarter of 2007. Average hourly cash margins for our well servicing fleet for the quarter ended September 30, 2008, were $50 compared to $127 for the previous quarter and $111 for the third quarter of 2007.

About Bronco Drilling

Bronco Drilling Company, Inc., a publicly held company headquartered in Edmond, Oklahoma, is a provider of contract land drilling services and workover services to oil and natural gas exploration and production companies. Bronco's common stock is quoted on The Nasdaq Global Market under the symbol "BRNC." For more information about Bronco Drilling Company, Inc., visit http://www.broncodrill.com.

Bronco Drilling Company, Inc. and Subsidiaries
CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS
(Amounts in thousands, except share par value)
                                                                            September 30,            December 31,
                                                                            2008                     2007
ASSETS                                                                      (Unaudited)
CURRENT ASSETS
Cash and cash equivalents                                                   $       2,057            $       5,721
Receivables
Trade and other, net of allowance for doubtful accounts of $1,222                   58,822                   61,499
and $1,834 in 2008 and 2007, respectively
Contract drilling in progress                                                       3,018                    2,128
Income tax receivable                                                               1,414                    1,191
Current deferred income taxes                                                       642                      775
Current maturities of note receivable                                               5,078                    -
Prepaid expenses                                                                    1,351                    705
Total current assets                                                                72,382                   72,019
PROPERTY AND EQUIPMENT - AT COST
Drilling rigs and related equipment                                                 495,462                  510,962
Transportation, office and other equipment                                          43,201                   41,942
                                                                                    538,663                  552,904
Less accumulated depreciation                                                       113,408                  86,274
                                                                                    425,255                  466,630
OTHER ASSETS
Goodwill                                                                            24,328                   23,908
Note receivable, less current maturities                                            5,070                    -
Investment in Challenger                                                            77,986                   -
Restricted cash and deposit                                                         2,829                    2,745
Intangibles, net, and other                                                         6,904                    3,303
                                                                                    117,117                  29,956
                                                                            $       614,754          $       568,605
LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS' EQUITY
CURRENT LIABILITIES
Accounts payable                                                            $       23,767           $       16,715
Accrued liabilities                                                                 15,135                   19,280
Current maturities of long-term debt                                                1,488                    1,256
Total current liabilities                                                           40,390                   37,251
LONG-TERM DEBT, less current maturities                                             86,594                   66,862
DEFERRED INCOME TAXES                                                               75,227                   68,063
COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES
STOCKHOLDERS' EQUITY
Common stock, $.01 par value, 100,000 shares authorized; 26,346                     266                      262
and 26,031 shares issued and outstanding at September 30, 2008 and
December 31, 2007
Additional paid-in capital                                                          302,734                  298,195
Retained earnings                                                                   109,543                  97,972
Total stockholders' equity                                                          412,543                  396,429
                                                                            $       614,754          $       568,605

Bronco Drilling Company, Inc. and Subsidiaries
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS
(Amounts in thousands, except per share amounts)
                                                                   Three Months Ended                      Nine Months Ended
                                                                   September 30,                           September 30,
                                                                   2008                2007                2008                 2007
                                                                   (Unaudited)                             (Unaudited)
REVENUES
Contract drilling revenues, including 1%, 0%, 1%, and 1% to        $   63,509          $   70,441          $   178,076          $   214,311
related parties
Well service, including 5%, 0%, 2%, and 0% to related parties          9,474               5,845               27,017               15,676
Gain (loss) on Challenger transactions                                 (63     )           -                   3,138                -
                                                                       72,920              76,286              208,231              229,987
EXPENSES
Contract drilling                                                      39,186              39,135              109,085              120,448
Well service                                                           8,201               3,931               19,222               9,853
Depreciation and amortization                                          12,939              9,219               37,321               31,317
General and administrative                                             13,199              5,353               24,353               15,444
                                                                       73,525              57,638              189,981              177,062
Income (loss) from operations                                          (605    )           18,648              18,250               52,925
OTHER INCOME (EXPENSE)
Interest expense                                                       (969    )           (1,009  )           (3,356   )           (3,071   )
Interest income                                                        43                  366                 1,052                617
Equity in income of investment                                         1,078               -                   2,854                -
Other, net                                                             (524    )           72                  (81      )           238
                                                                       (372    )           (571    )           469                  (2,216   )
Income (loss) before income taxes                                      (977    )           18,077              18,719               50,709
Income tax expense (benefit)                                           (60     )           7,009               7,148                19,540
NET INCOME (LOSS)                                                  $   (917    )       $   11,068          $   11,571           $   31,169
Income (loss) per common share-Basic                               $   (0.03   )       $   0.43            $   0.44             $   1.20
Income (loss) per common share-Diluted                             $   (0.03   )       $   0.42            $   0.44             $   1.20
Weighted average number of shares outstanding-Basic                    26,290              26,025              26,275               25,984
Weighted average number of shares outstanding-Diluted                  26,426              26,126              26,363               26,064

Non-GAAP Financial Measures

This press release includes a presentation of average daily cash margin for our land drilling fleet, average hourly cash margin for our well servicing fleet and EBITDA which are not financial measures recognized under generally accepted accounting principles, or GAAP. Average daily cash margin is a non-GAAP financial measure equal to net income, the most directly comparable GAAP financial measure, minus well service revenue, plus well service expense, income tax expense, other expense, general and administrative expense and depreciation and amortization, and divided by revenue days for the period. Average hourly cash margin is a non-GAAP financial measure equal to net income, the most directly comparable GAAP financial measure, minus contract drilling revenue, plus contract drilling expense, income tax expense, other expense, general and administrative expense and depreciation and amortization, and divided by revenue hours for the period. EBITDA is a non-GAAP financial measure equal to net income, the most directly comparable GAAP financial measure, plus interest expense, income tax expense and depreciation and amortization. We have presented average daily cash margin, average hourly cash margin and EBITDA because we use these metrics as an integral part of our internal reporting to measure our performance and to evaluate the performance of our senior management. We consider these metrics to be important indicators of the operational strength of our business. A limitation of these metrics, however, is that they do not reflect the periodic costs of certain capitalized tangible and intangible assets used in generating revenues in our business. Management evaluates the costs of such tangible and intangible assets and the impact of related impairments through other financial measures, such as capital expenditures, investment spending and return on capital. Therefore, we believe that average daily cash margin, average hourly cash margin and EBITDA provide useful information to our investors regarding our performance and overall results of operations. Neither average daily cash margin, average hourly cash margin nor EBITDA is intended to be a performance measure that should be regarded as an alternative to, or more meaningful than, either net income as an indicator of operating performance or to cash flows from operating activities as a measure of liquidity. In addition, none of these metrics is intended to represent funds available for dividends, reinvestment or other discretionary uses, and should not be considered in isolation or as a substitute for measures of performance prepared in accordance with GAAP. These non-GAAP financial measures may not be comparable to similarly titled measures presented by other companies, and may not be identical to corresponding measures used in our various agreements.

The following presents a reconciliation of average daily cash margin and EBITDA to net income, the most directly comparable GAAP financial measure (in thousands, except revenue days and average daily cash margin):

                                       Three Months Ended                      Three Months Ended
                                       September 30,                           June 30,
                                       2008                 2007               2008
                                       (Unaudited)                             (Unaudited)
Reconciliation of average daily cash
margin to net income:
Net income (loss)                      $   (917     )       $   11,068         $       4,339
Well service revenue                       (9,474   )           (5,845   )             (9,320   )
Well service expense                       8,201                3,931                  6,079
Income tax expense (benefit)               (60      )           7,009                  2,655
Other expense                              435                  571                    2,155
General and administrative                 13,199               5,353                  5,414
Depreciation and amortization              12,939               9,219                  12,457
Drilling margin                            24,323               31,306                 23,779
Revenue days                               3,208                3,739                  3,355
Average daily cash margin              $   7,582            $   8,373          $       7,088
                                       Three Months Ended                      Three Months Ended
                                       September 30,                           June 30,
                                       2008                 2007               2008
                                       (Unaudited)                             (Unaudited)
Reconciliation of average hourly cash
margin to net income:
Net income (loss)                      $   (917     )       $   11,068         $       4,339
Contract drilling revenue                  (63,509  )           (70,441  )             (60,494  )
Contract drilling expense                  39,186               39,135                 36,715
Income tax expense (benefit)               (60      )           7,009                  2,655
Other expense                              435                  571                    2,155
General and administrative                 13,199               5,353                  5,414
Depreciation and amortization              12,939               9,219                  12,457
Well service margin                        1,273                1,914                  3,241
Operating hours                            25,401               17,184                 25,533
Average hourly cash margin             $   50               $   111            $       127

                                 Three Months Ended                    Three Months Ended
                                 September 30,                         June 30,
                                 2008                   2007           2008
                                 (Unaudited)                           (Unaudited)
Calculation of EBITDA:
Net income (loss)                $    (917    )         $    11,068    $          4,339
Interest expense                      969                    1,009                1,161
Income tax expense (benefit)          (60     )              7,009                2,655
Depreciation and amortization         12,939                 9,219                12,457
EBITDA                           $    12,931            $    28,305    $          20,612

SOURCE: Bronco Drilling Company, Inc.

Bob Jarvis 
Investor Relations 
Bronco Drilling Company 
(405) 242-4444 EXT: 102 
bjarvis@broncodrill.com

Expected next investor conference call information:
Conference Call Date: 10/29/2008
Conference Call Time: 10:00 AM
Conference Call URL: http://www.alchenergy.com/investor.html

Expected next investor conference call information:
Conference Call Date: 10/29/2008
Conference Call Time: 10:00 AM
Conference Call URL: http://www.alchenergy.com/investor.html

Participants may pre-register for the call at the following link and will be issued a new phone number and a PIN number to use when dialing into the live call which will provide quick access to the conference by bypassing the operator upon connection.

http://web.meetme.net/r.aspx?p=1&a=70542305420723

A telephonic replay will be available through November 6, 2008 and may be accessed by calling (888) 843-8996 (international calls (630) 652-3044) and using the passcode 5564078. Also, a webcast archive will be available at http://www.alchenergy.com shortly after the call is complete. For more information, please contact Darla Blaha at Allis-Chalmers Energy Inc. at 713-369-0550 or email dblaha@alchenergy.com.

About Allis-Chalmers

Allis-Chalmers Energy Inc. is a Houston-based multi-faceted oilfield company. We provide services and equipment to oil and natural gas exploration and production companies, domestically primarily in Texas, Louisiana, New Mexico, Colorado, Oklahoma, Mississippi, Wyoming, Arkansas, West Virginia, offshore in the Gulf of Mexico, and internationally, primarily in Argentina and Mexico. Allis-Chalmers provides rental services, international drilling, directional drilling, tubular services, underbalanced drilling, and productions services. For more information, visit our website at http://www.alchenergy.com or request future press releases via email at http://www.b2i.us/irpass.asp?BzID=1233&to=ea&s=0.

SOURCE: Allis-Chalmers Energy Inc.

Allis-Chalmers Energy, Houston 
Jeffrey Freedman, VP IR, 713-369-0550