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Jun
23
2025
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Posted by Admin
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VR, AR, and MR: These are the trends dominating and driving simulation-based rotorcraft training today.
Definition time: VR stands for virtual reality, which fully immerses the user inside a digital environment. AR is short for augmented reality, where the user’s real-world field of view is overlaid with digital imagery. And MR stands for mixed reality, where users can physically interact with actual items in either a VR or AR environment.
Here’s how the rotorcraft industry is using VR, AR and MR for simulation-based training, at six cutting-edge companies.
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Tags:
Augmented Reality Training
Mixed Reality Training
Virtual Reality Training
Categories:
Training
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Jun
16
2025
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Posted by Admin
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Having responded last year to 263 wildfires that burned over 134,000 acres, the Nevada Division of Forestry relies heavily on its fleet of helicopters. Martin Scharenborg & Ramon Wenink visited and flew with the Nevada Division of Forestry Air Operations to learn about their mission and the challenges they are facing.
With thousands of wildfires nationwide occurring annually, the use of airborne assets prove to be of great value in fighting these fires. Therefore the Nevada Division of Forestry (NDF), founded in 1957, started its own aviation program in 1959 by converting a Beechcraft C-45 Torpedo bomber into an air tanker for firefighting. It took another 15 years when the first helicopters were acquired with assistance of the U.S. Forest Service. Three Bell TH-13Ts from surplus U.S. Army stocks entered service in 1974 primarily for aerial fire reconnaissance. Although there was a strong need for a strong and capable firefighting helicopter , the three Sioux helicopters soldiered on and remained in service until 1991. In 1993 the U.S. Forest Service assisted again in acquiring surplus Army helicopters for the NDF. The Bell UH-1H Huey was selected because of its powerful engine and the ability to transport a considerable number of firefighters in the back of the aircraft. Eventually three UH-1Hs entered service from 1994 and that year is seen as the birth of the current NDF’s ‘Battle Born Helitack Program.’ From 2006, the fleet of UH-1H helicopters received several upgrades to meet present and future requirements. In 2019 one UH-1H was retired and replaced by an Eagle Copters ‘Eagle Single,’ a Bell 212 conversion.
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Tags:
Helitack
Nevada Division of Forestry Air Operations
Categories:
Company Profiles
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Jun
09
2025
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Posted by Admin
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The vertical-lift industry has experienced a profound transformation over the past several decades, particularly in the areas of pilot and mechanic training and hiring. From a system once dominated by military influence, to one now driven by civilian training pipelines, the evolution has been shaped by shifts in global defense structures, advancements in aircraft technology, and changes in economic incentives within industry.
In the 1970s and 1980s, the U.S. military was the primary source of trained vertical-lift pilots and mechanics. With Vietnam War-era flight programs and post-war military infrastructure still robust, thousands of well-trained pilots and maintainers exited the service with not only skill, but also experience. These individuals fed the civil vertical-lift market, populating every sector from EMS to law enforcement, utility to offshore, and corporate to tourism.
Military-trained pilots were well-versed in flight under pressure, decision-making in critical situations, and operating a wide variety of platforms. Mechanics came with rigorous maintenance discipline, strong work ethics, and experience on military-grade aircraft, many of which shared similarities with their civil counterparts. Employers benefited from this steady stream of talent—already trained, experienced, and ready for work.
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Tags:
helicopter careers
Helicopter Industry
Helicopter Jobs
Helicopter Salaries
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Jun
02
2025
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Posted by Admin
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Just prior to Verticon 2025, Rotor Pro visited Donauwörth, Germany, to learn what the vertical lift industry can expect to see in 2025 from Airbus Helicopters. With nearly 8,000 employees, the facility is home to Airbus Helicopters’ second largest manufacturing facility in the world. Donauwörth is home to not only the development center of the CityAirbus NextGen eVTOL prototype, but also the production lines of the H135, H145, and the military NH90 helicopters.
Looking into the rear-view mirror, Airbus Helicopters had a strong 2024. 455 gross orders (net: 450) showed a steady market growth with a strong performance last year for its light, light twin-engined, and heavy helicopters. Orders came from 182 customers in 42 countries. The Company delivered 361 helicopters in 2024, resulting in a preliminary 57% share of the civil and parapublic market.
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Tags:
Airbus Helicopters
Airbus Helicopters Pioneer Lab
CityAirbus NextGen
H140
H160
Categories:
Company Profiles
Helicopter Sectors
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May
27
2025
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Posted by Admin
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RPMN: What is your current position?
I work as a utility helicopter pilot in Alaska, where a helicopter is often the only way to transport passengers and supplies to remote areas. Conducting aerial surveys, pipeline, and power-line inspections, slinging equipment to mountain tops or conducting crew changes for offshore platforms and container ships in the Bell 206 and 407 are just a few examples of my various tasks. The ever-changing weather can be a challenge: Besides extreme temperatures, we often deal with complex weather patterns that can shift rapidly and unpredictably.
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Tags:
Jani Hartung
Utility Helicopter
Categories:
Human Interest
Career Development
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May
19
2025
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Posted by Admin
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Around the corner from Helsinki International Airport, Coptersafety stands as a center of excellence in the helicopter pilot training world. This innovative company has carved a niche for itself by focusing exclusively on simulator-based training, pushing the boundaries of safety and proficiency within the demanding world of helicopter operations. “Our mission at Coptersafety has always been to increase safety in the rotorcraft industry, with bespoke [custom tailored] training services for helicopter pilots around the world,” said Hannu Marjoniemi, CEO and co-founder of Coptersafety.
[Read More...]
Tags:
Coptersafety
helicopter pilot training
rotorcraft safety
simulator-based training
Categories:
Company Profiles
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May
12
2025
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Posted by Admin
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We catch Gretchen Johnson in a rare hour of relatively free time. She was in Orlando, having headed south from her metro-Atlanta home, when she said in a cultured, soft Southern accent that would make Scarlett O’Hara sit up and take notice, “Thank you so much for choosing to spend an hour with me; I’m flattered. Hopefully, something I say will be worth repeating. It’s wonderful being down here in Florida because now Miss Georgia can’t decide whether she’s winter or spring.”
Make up your cotton-pickin’ mind, Miss Georgia!
It would be wrong to base an assumption on Johnson’s accent and Southern manners that she’s some antebellum belle. The CEO and founder of DaVinciSKY was in Orlando for a “Women in Power” symposium—and that could be a clever pun because Johnson’s flagship company and its subsidiaries feature helicopters in power-line construction, inspection, and maintenance.
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Tags:
DaVinciSKY
power line patrol helicopter
Utility Helicopter
Categories:
Opinion-Editorial
Human Interest
Company Profiles
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May
05
2025
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Posted by Admin
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On the personnel supply side of the equation, most every operator is working hard to recruit and retain experienced pilots.
There are still many external forces impacting the supply of working helicopter pilots. These forces are not only keeping the supply lines short of personnel, but stifling the growth of the base pilot pool as well.
As published in previous salary survey reports, the factors impacting operators stem from many issues to include; aging pilots retiring en-mass, aggressive airline recruitment of helicopter pilots, and the retraction of pilot training pipelines from traditional sources like civilian academies and the U.S. Military.
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Categories:
Career Development
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Apr
28
2025
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Posted by Admin
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The helicopter industry is continuing to face a pilot shortage that threatens to impact operations across sectors, such as emergency medical services (EMS), firefighting, law enforcement, offshore transport, and tourism. As seasoned pilots retire and fewer new aviators enter the workforce, companies are struggling to maintain flight schedules and meet increasing demands for aerial services.
Several factors contribute to this shortage. One of the primary challenges is the high cost and long duration of helicopter pilot training, which can exceed $100,000 and take several years to complete. Unlike fixed-wing aviation, which often benefits from more direct career pathways and funding opportunities, the vertical-lift industry lacks sufficient structured programs to attract and retain new talent.
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Tags:
Helicopter Pilot Shortage
Categories:
Career Development
Opinion-Editorial
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Apr
21
2025
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Posted by Admin
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In the mid-1980s, during my first tour as a young and inexperienced U.S. Army AH-1F Cobra pilot in Germany, I went through a near-catastrophic event that forever changed my approach to cockpit safety. It happened during a routine but fun training mission where I was performing low-level flight maneuvers in a loose trail formation with several other Cobras. I was at the controls in the back seat, flying in the trail position, focused on terrain using the peaks and valleys to try to remain clear of a notional surface-to-air missile threat. It didn’t get much better than this for an easy day of flying.
I aggressively banked left and descended into an approaching valley. As I reached my desired heading, I attempted to return to wings-level. Nothing happened. Uh-oh. Despite my maximum effort to apply right-aft cyclic, the aircraft stubbornly continued a left roll and descent. I blurted out my problem to my front-seat copilot. No response. He had problems of his own.
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Tags:
Safety Sitrep
Securing the cockpit
Categories:
Safety