Author: Admin
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Nov
18
2024
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Posted by Admin
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It is a busy and sunny morning at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst in New Jersey. While the first Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker of the Air National Guard’s 108th Wing takes to the sky, a Boeing C-17 Globemaster and a Boeing KC-46 Pegasus of the 305th Air Mobility Wing, wait in line for their ATC clearance. On the platforms of the United States Marine Corps there is a lot of activity going on as well as a section of Sikorsky CH-53E Super Stallions of HMH-772 being prepared for the day’s flying. Martin Scharenborg and Ramon Wenink / Global Aviation Review Press, were invited to fly with the ‘Hustlers’ and report about the important task this reserve unit has within the United States Marine Corps.
First Steps
The history of the unit goes back to April 1958 when Helicopter Transport Squadron 772 (HMR-772) was established as part of the United States Marine Corps Reserve Training Command at Naval Air Station-Willow Grove in Pennsylvania. The squadron was renamed in April 1962 into Marine Medium Helicopter Squadron 772 (HMM-772) and became part of Marine Aircraft Group 43 / 4th Marine Aircraft Wing in 1965. In 1970, the unit was relocated for a short period to Naval Air Station-Lakehurst where it switched on 1 September 1971 to its current name: Marine Heavy Helicopter Squadron 772 (HMH-772). A year later, the unit returned again to Willow Grove where it became part of Marine Aircraft Group 49 / 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing.
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Tags:
Helicopter Transport Squadron 772
Marine Heavy Helicopter Squadron 772 HMH-772
Marine Medium Helicopter Squadron 77
Categories:
Helicopter Sectors
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Nov
11
2024
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Posted by Admin
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Avincis, is Europe’s largest emergency aerial services operator concentrating on aerial emergency medical services, aerial search and rescue operations and aerial firefighting missions. Their team of more than 2,400 pros fly and maintain a fleet of more than 200 aircraft in the nations of Spain, Italy, Norway, Sweden, Portugal and Finland. Avincis also flies operations outside Europe in Chile and Mozambique.
Leading this international organization from Lisbon, Portugal, is CEO John Boag, who in his easy-breezy Aussie accent jumps into our interview with a question of his own, “What would you like to know?” We answer that the purpose of Executive Watch is to introduce readers to leaders who influence our industry, at which point he quips, “Great! Give me a few minutes to find one.” He then turns to his Group Director of Communications, “Daisy, will answer these questions; she’s much better at lying than me; I just say it straight.” This is going to be fun!
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Tags:
aerial emergency medical services
Aerial Firefighting
aerial search and rescue operations
Avincis
Categories:
Company Profiles
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Nov
01
2024
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Posted by Admin
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Rotex Helicopter is a true success story since 1997. Strong from flying about 30,000 missions, the operator is the only provider of K-Max service in Europe. The company that specializes in external loads has about 60 employees, more than 50,000 flight hours, and boasts 550 tons of daily capacity per aircraft.
With a fleet of three helicopters, the company, based in Kägiswil City, Switzerland, serves throughout Europe.
How did it all begin? A group of five people met 25 years ago to establish a strong service in the helicopter market with the project “Rotex Helicopter.” They were young, enthusiastic and they had a mutual vision. The team had significant experience in aerial work on different helicopters in Switzerland and abroad.
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Oct
25
2024
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Posted by Admin
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The European helicopter market not only represents a large portion of the global industry, but has always been a vital region for our industry, serving diverse industries such as emergency medical services (EMS), offshore energy, defense, and corporate aviation. As 2024 unfolds, the landscape of the helicopter market in Europe is evolving rapidly, with a mix of both challenges and growth opportunities shaping the future.
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Tags:
European helicopter market
Categories:
Opinion-Editorial
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Oct
21
2024
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Posted by Admin
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When I was commissioned as an officer in the Marines, I had no intention of staying in beyond the required time commitment that I had to fulfill, but life as a Cobra helicopter pilot grew on me. Supporting our Marines on the ground was an awesome responsibility and one that we all took quite seriously. The military provides great training, support and mission focus – an entire system that we take for granted at times. I had no plans to continue flying post-service, but time and space aligned. I was not only able to stay in the cockpit, but to do so in another model of Cobra that was retrofitted for firefighting operations. I got to do nearly the same job without being shot at! Was I fully prepared to make the transition? In my mind, I was more than ready to leave “Big Green” behind and take on this challenging new mission, but there was a lot more luck than planning. What I would like to offer are just a couple points that may require less luck and for you as you make your transition in a more thoughtful and intentional way.
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Tags:
Military to Civilian Aviation
Military to Civilian Transition
Military to Civilian Transition Helicopters
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Oct
14
2024
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Posted by Admin
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The Icelandic Coast Guard has three Airbus Helicopters H225s at its disposal. Their operating area ranges from countless waterfalls to dangerously cold seawater and from snow-white glaciers to newly formed land rising from the earth's core. Director General Georg Kristinn Lárusson describes five years of flying the H225 in a challenging and dynamic environment with constantly changing weather and a wide range of tasks.
Iceland is located between the North Atlantic and Arctic Ocean and is known for its unparalleled natural beauty. Three tectonic plates, including the North American and Eurasian, provide much volcanic activity and attract many visitors throughout the year. The island is home to under 400,000 residents, but that number increases fivefold each year due to visiting tourists. Reykjavík Domestic Airport houses the fleet of the Icelandic Coast Guard (ICG) that consists of three Airbus H225s and one fixed-wing Dash 8 Q300 maritime surveillance aircraft.
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Tags:
Icelandic Coast Guard
Categories:
Company Profiles
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Oct
07
2024
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Posted by Admin
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About a year ago, I was conducting pilot training for a Part 135 company, which was a relatively new customer. Prior to FAA approval to conduct this training, I conducted a review of their Part 135 training program to determine their differences from our training. Most often, a VFR Part 135 helicopter operators training program is going to be quite like another. Of course, some differences will always exist. The question is whether those differences require additional training and checking.
During the review of this company’s training program, I noticed a statement regarding the conduct of autorotation training that said, “at no time shall the throttle be reduced during autorotation training maneuvers.” This immediately got my attention. My initial thought was: If you don’t close the throttle, how are you practicing autorotations?
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Tags:
autorotation training
my two cents worth
Pilot Training
Randy Rowles
VFR Part 135 helicopter operators training program
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Sep
30
2024
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Posted by Admin
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When it comes to search and rescue (SAR) operations, the teaming of drones (aka UAS) and helicopters go together like peas and carrots. “In today’s SAR missions, UAS can effectively complement helicopter operations performing the search task and also reduce the risks for the crewed helicopter that can be used only when strictly necessary, such as to perform rescue operations,” said Roberto Pretolani, Leonardo Helicopters division marketing manager for rotary uncrewed aerial systems. Leonardo produces both helicopters and fixed- and rotary-wing UAS.
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Sep
23
2024
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Posted by Admin
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RPMN: What is your current position?
Right now, I been working as the assistant chief pilot of Metro Aviation Inc. in Shreveport, Louisiana, as an instructor and check airman for the EC-135 and EC-145 and as an instructor on the Bell 407 for our programs, I flew the line for five years and three years ago I was invited to the Helicopter Flight Training Center and I’ve also worked as director of training at Night Flight Concepts Inc. in Waco, Texas, as an NVG Instructor pilot for the last 10 years. I’m very happy with both companies. They've been like family since I came to the U.S., which is my new homeland.
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Categories:
Career Development
Human Interest
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Sep
16
2024
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Posted by Admin
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When it comes to flight helmets, Steve Mifsud has seen it all.
“I’ve seen helmets that were picked up by tornadoes and thrown a ways away,” Mifsud related. “Dogs have torn them up. They’ve even been used as bowling balls in Antarctica (by bored researchers). And one was burned on one side in a wildfire.”
Mifsud has seen all this damage on various helmets because people chose to repair them. So they sent their headgear to Evolution Helmets in Melbourne, Florida to get them restored to mint condition. “You see some crazy things,” concluded Mifsud, a helmet tech at Evolution Helmets.
Mifsud recalls totally refurbishing a 1990s-era Army helmet for one customer. About six months later, the pilot called Mifsud from the hospital to ask him to restore his helmet again – after he was a passenger in a rotorcraft that spun out and crashed. Luckily he walked away with a concussion and a dented helmet but nothing worse. “The helmet was up to OEM standards...and that definitely could have helped,” Mifsud said. The new styrofoam likely softened the impact when the g-force shoved the passenger’s head against the machine, he added.
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Tags:
Evolution Helmets
Helicopter Helmet Painting
Helicopter Helmet Repair
Helmet Refurbishing
Categories:
Opinion-Editorial
Safety