Author: Admin
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Feb
23
2026
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Posted by Admin
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For decades, the helicopter industry was defined by incrementalism—marginal gains in lift, slightly quieter rotors, and traditional turbines. But as we settle into 2026, we are witnessing a fundamental decoupling from the past. This year marks the moment when "future tech" graduated from the laboratory to the flight line and is fundamentally altering how we view vertical lift.
The most visible shift is the electrification of the rotorcraft. This year, the first flight of the battery-electric Robinson R66 demonstrator has signaled that zero-emission flight is no longer a niche pursuit for startups, but a priority for the world’s most prolific manufacturers. Coupled with the expansion of Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF)—now reaching a critical mass in supply chains—the industry is finally addressing its carbon footprint with "drop-in" solutions that require no hardware overhauls.
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Tags:
Editor Lyn Burks
Editors Letter
Categories:
Opinion-Editorial
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Feb
16
2026
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Posted by Admin
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In aviation, visibility is everything. Whether you’re performing a detailed preflight inspection on a dark ramp or managing systems in the cockpit during a night approach, proper lighting can mean the difference between a smooth operation and a costly oversight. Pilots have long relied on flashlights, headlamps, and panel lighting—but each has its drawbacks. Enter the patented DEX FingerLight, a compact, wearable illumination tool that’s quickly becoming a pilot favorite and a piece of equipment that I don’t leave the ground without.
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Tags:
DEX Finger LIght
Categories:
Training
Safety
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Feb
09
2026
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Posted by Admin
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In the far south of South America, between the fruit valleys of central Chile and the dramatic landscapes of Patagonia, operates Aerotoscana — an aviation company that blends the precision of modern flight with the adventurous spirit of its founders, María Jesús Ardura and Felipe Reitz. What began as a shared dream has grown into a reputable helicopter operation known for its professionalism, versatility, and innovative approach to rotorcraft aviation.
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Tags:
Aerotoscana
Helicopter Operators Chile
Helicopter Operators Patagonia
Categories:
Human Interest
Company Profiles
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Feb
02
2026
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Posted by Admin
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The helicopter training community has long been built on mentorship, credibility, and shared experience. For generations, knowledge has been passed from one aviator to the next through hard-earned expertise and honest, practical instruction. Today, that tradition is threatened by a growing issue: false narratives, manufactured authority, and AI-generated content presented as fact. With a camera or an internet connection, anyone can publish training commentary, and because online platforms reward attention rather than accuracy, the newest and most impressionable members of our industry are increasingly exposed to misinformation with real-world consequences.
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Tags:
helicopter training ai generated content
Helicopter training social media
Categories:
Career Development
Safety
Opinion-Editorial
Training
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Jan
26
2026
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Posted by Admin
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About an hour’s drive southeast of Rome lies Frosinone Air Base. At first glance, the base appears to be a small location in a valley with only a grass strip. However, it is the training ground for Italy's military helicopter pilots and home to the 72nd Stormo (72nd Wing). The unit operates the small, reliable, and rugged TH-500B. Unit Commander Colonel Alessandro Fiorini briefed us on a unique mission: performing the very first aerial dances with the newest helicopter pilots of the Italian armed forces.
Colonel Fiorini’s path to Frosinone is as varied as it is impressive. After joining the Italian air force academy in 1996, he graduated as a military pilot in 2002 at the Euro-NATO Joint Jet Pilot Training (ENJJPT) program at Sheppard AFB in Texas. Fiorini said, “After the lead-in fighter training course, I served as a Panavia Tornado pilot and as an instructor at the Operational Conversion Unit (OCU). My instructor position at the OCU was followed by a temporary assignment at the ENJJPT program as a T-38C flight instructor.”
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Tags:
72nd Wing
Frosinone Air Base
Italy's military helicopter pilots training
TH-500B
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Jan
19
2026
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Posted by Admin
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Swelling rivers overflowed their banks and blustering winds fell trees as Hurricane Helene hit the Appalachian Mountains on Friday, 27 September 2024. The Category 4 hurricane approached the coast of Florida earlier in the week, beginning its ravaging course across the United States Southeast. In western North Carolina, the floodwaters and wind quickly destroyed roads and cut off communication for the communities nestled in the mountains.
Within 24 hours, while most of the country was still stunned by the rising fatality numbers, several groups began organizing and deploying their aviation assets. Among these aviation assets was a JAARS Robinson R66 helicopter, which took off from Jungle Aviation and Relay Service (JAARS) Townsend (N52), North Carolina, the morning of the 28th to survey the Avery County Airport (7A8) and its surrounding area.
Avery County Airport has a longstanding history with the JAARS aviation training department. JAARS, a mission aviation organization that covers the “last mile” of missions across global geographical barriers, has trained their pilots in the mountains and airstrips surrounding 7A8 for 50 years. With the JAARS base located south of Charlotte, North Carolina, the local Appalachian Mountains provide specific mountain flying opportunities that reflect similar terrain challenges around the world.
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Tags:
JAARS
Jungle Aviation and Relay Service
Categories:
Company Profiles
Human Interest
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Jan
12
2026
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Posted by Admin
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RPMN: What is your current position?
Rotor-wing chief pilot for Metro Aviation Inc.; it’s the best job in the company! I’m responsible for the hiring, training, currency, and qualification of approximately 600 pilots. I’m also a company instructor/check airman and still teach initial and recurrent flight training.
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Tags:
Chief Pilot Metro Aviation
Meet A Rotor Pro
Wells Cornette
Categories:
Career Development
Human Interest
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Jan
05
2026
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Posted by Admin
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The rotorcraft industry continued to amaze and astound us over the past 12 months. Here are the advances that caught our eyes and made Rotor Pro’s Best of 2025 list…
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Categories:
Helicopter Sectors
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Dec
28
2025
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Posted by Admin
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Jeremy Bryck’s humor gets us chuckling before our interview. When told we will be looking for him “to say something outstanding,” he has a deadpan reply. “Well, we have high expectations for today.” The Bowen Island, Canada, native is Canada Dry.
His humble humor saves me from envying—actually jealously hating—his first 22 years spent on that little island off of West Vancouver: He grew up in a picturesque village in a home heated by the warmth of a crackling fire from wood his family gathered each crisp autumn. “We were a hard-working family that enjoyed country life.” That country-boy life involved boating and kayaking amongst whales or either skiing and snowboarding on the mainland. “You could see Cypress Mountain from our house,” he says. “Yeah, did all that stuff; it was gorgeous.”
Still, let me not be too quick to judge. Bryck chose to leave this Pacific Coast paradise upon graduating from the British Columbia Institute of Technology (BCIT) with a two-year degree to begin his apprenticeship in aircraft maintenance engineering. He says, “I saw the writing on the wall and realized that if I wanted a career in aviation maintenance I’d have to relocate out of Vancouver.”
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Tags:
Rotor Pro Executive Watch
Categories:
Company Profiles
Human Interest
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Dec
22
2025
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Posted by Admin
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The year 2025 marked a pivotal moment in vertical flight that was characterized by the traditional helicopter sector experiencing booming demand against severe supply constraints, while the nascent electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) sector pushed aggressively toward commercialization while navigating crucial home-stretch regulatory hurdles. The two segments are not yet competitors, but are instead complementary forces driving the entire vertical-mobility ecosystem forward.
[Read More...]
Tags:
Rotor Pro Editor's Letter
Categories:
Opinion-Editorial