Author: Admin
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Apr
17
2023
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Posted by Admin
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The rotorcraft industry is expanding its embrace beyond helicopters to include electric vertical takeoff and landing aircraft (eVTOLs) and unmanned aerial systems (UAS or unmanned aerial vehicles/UAVs), as reflected by this magazine’s rebranding to Rotor Pro.
This is a change with wide-ranging implications for the entire helicopter industry, including maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) service providers. Just like helicopters, eVTOL and UAS aircraft will need to be maintained and repaired over time.
So what does this mean to the helicopter MRO sector? To find out, Rotor Pro queried a variety of MRO-related service providers.
Three uniquely different service providers shared their insights on the subject: Airbus Urban Air Mobility (UAM), the Lee County (Florida) Mosquito Control District, and Precision Integrated Programs. Here’s what they had to say about the impact of eVTOLs and UAS on the helicopter MRO market.
[Read More...]
Categories:
Helicopter Sectors
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Apr
10
2023
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Posted by Admin
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Whether you enjoyed the 1980s Tom Selleck or the 2018 Jay Hernandez version of Magnum P.I., the opening credits with the actors, Ferrari, MD 500E helicopter, and the pulsing music are memorable. The agile brown, yellow, and red striped helicopter glides over the Hawaiian Islands and has been compared to the red Ferrari car that Magnum drives in the helicopter’s handling.
In the show, the helicopter belongs to T.C.’s Island Hopper business. T.C. is often roped into helping Magnum solve crimes using the agile helicopter. The aircraft and other models of MD Helicopter products have been in the rotor world since Howard Hughes first invested in helicopter manufacturing in the 1950s with the aviation division of the Hughes Tool Company.
While the business has come a long way in over 70 years, one thing remains certain, MD Helicopters is made up of passionate people who exude pride in their products. And, to the credit of the TV show’s private investigator slant and the brand, a key customer includes law enforcement.
[Read More...]
Categories:
Company Profiles
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Apr
10
2023
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Posted by Admin
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Skilled helicopter pilots know there’s no substitute for effective flight training. For the most impactful training, there’s only one decision that makes the most sense for its effectiveness, indirect costs and range of training, and that’s simulator training at FlightSafety International.
Fixed-wing pilots and the airlines have used simulator training to their advantage for years. While helicopter pilots have had the tools available to them, there has recently been a culture shift to simulator training over training in the aircraft, and for good reasons.
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Tags:
flight training devices
FlightSafety Level D Simulator
FTD
Helicopter Simulator Training
Simulator Training
Categories:
Career Development
Training
Safety
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Apr
03
2023
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Posted by Admin
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The general aviation industry is hemorrhaging pilots to the airlines, and it doesn’t appear that this practice will slow soon. For decades, helicopter pilots were not a targeted market for the airline industry, but times have changed. Qualified and highly skilled helicopter pilots have their own path to airline selection from both military and civilian backgrounds. This situation has placed a strain on the helicopter industry to obtain and retain qualified aviation management personnel.
[Read More...]
Tags:
14 CFR Part 135.243(b)
Helicopter Pilot Shortage
Part 135 Pilots
Categories:
Regulatory
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Mar
27
2023
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Posted by Admin
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Randy Rowles, the president of Helicopter Institute, has been presenting at the HeliSuccess Career Development Seminar for 14 years now. In the context of career planning to become a helicopter pilot, Rowles ends every presentation with the line, “Having a Dream is Not a Plan." With respect to starting a niche helicopter training company over a decade ago, he’s been planning his dream ever since.
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Tags:
Helicopter Institute
OEM alternative helicopter training
OEM helicopter training provider
Randy Rowles
Categories:
Company Profiles
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Mar
16
2023
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Posted by Admin
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RPMN: What is your current position?
My current position with Skyhunter Outfitters and Semper Fly Helicopters is CEO and pilot. I am a CFII and also an A&P mechanic so I help maintain our helicopter. Skyhunter offers helicopter hog hunting along the Texas/Oklahoma border as well as night thermal hunts on the ground. Semper Fly Helicopters does tours of Broken Bow Lake, Oklahoma, customizable tours, and skydiving events. I am working on solidifying a Part 135 so we can offer charters. We also do a lot of work with veterans and first responders and try to donate hunts and host events to raise money for them.
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Tags:
Meet A Rotor Pro
Categories:
Human Interest
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Mar
13
2023
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Posted by Admin
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What would a new year be without change? After all, with the new year comes new resolutions for many. But, although the local fitness clubs are cashing in on the optimistic hopes for those that may have overindulged on all of the goodies during the holiday season, it is back to the grind for many others. That daily grind includes industry changes that need to be explored.
Some of these changes are now in place and active, and others are on the, perhaps distant, horizon. Regardless, I want to highlight three changes that should be of interest to CFIs and applicants alike.
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Tags:
FAA’s testing standards
Categories:
Regulatory
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Mar
05
2023
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Posted by Admin
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Small business owners and entrepreneurs often feel like they’re little David with only a slingshot going into battle against strong and tested giants. After 16 years of battle, it is safe to assume AeroLEDS is slaying giants armed with a “slingshot” that was simply the ability to out-pace the competition. “I knew that the main competitive edge we held was our ability to work longer hours and more days, with less mistakes and higher efficacy” says Founder/CEO Nate Calvin. “My work ethic was formed by the ethos of family, my upbringing in a rural environment, and experience as a young kid in wrestling. After you get your butt kicked a few times, you figure out that hard work always pays off if you want a different result”. Calvin, a former wrestling, and current Jiu Jitsu practitioner is deftly taking large competitors down to the mat by leveraging advantages that an agile, small business has over big, established competitors. He explains, “We had no business on paper going up against any of these industry giants, but you have to play to your strengths. For the first dozen years of AeroLEDS, I was working 80-100 hours a week every single week with a dogged pursuit of survival. Like any grappling match, I could live with failure as long as I knew I worked at my best.”
[Read More...]
Tags:
AeroLeds
AEROLEDS’ CEO & FOUNDER
NATE CALVIN
Categories:
Company Profiles
Human Interest
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Feb
27
2023
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Posted by Admin
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Although January 1 starts the calendar new year, I feel like the vertical lift industry’s new year begins on the first day of HAI Heli-Expo, the world’s largest vertical lift industry trade show. 14,000-plus attendees as well as 600-plus companies representing manufacturers and services providers come together to share with our industry what’s new, as well as to connect with customers.
In 2022, we saw many new milestones across a variety of sectors.
Unmanned, Advanced Air Mobility and eVTOL aircraft, which seemed like a pipe dream for several years, moved the needle in a big way with many AAM and eVTOL aircraft flying for the first time, with some achieving certain levels of certification. There was a renewed call for the industry to embrace these new platforms when HAI President Jim Viola strongly said, “Let me be clear: AAM (advanced air mobility unmanned aircraft) and eVTOL (electric-powered vertical takeoff and landing aircraft) operations are complementary to conventional helicopters.” On the unmanned front, on Page 74 Rotor Pro spoke to OEMs and operators to learn who will service Unmanned, Advanced Air Mobility and eVTOL aircraft in our industry.
[Read More...]
Tags:
eVTOL
OEM
Rotor Pro at HeliExpo 2023
Categories:
Career Development
Opinion-Editorial
Helicopter Event Coverage
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Feb
20
2023
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Posted by Admin
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Not only have I seen numerous pilots contract it dozens of times, but I have also fallen victim to it. It lurks both day and night. No, I'm not referring to a strange illness that can only be cured by some supplement found on late-night infomercials. Instead, I'm talking about "Green-Dot Syndrome." It usually presents itself in the following manner. The on-call pilot, such as an HAA pilot, law enforcement pilot, etc., receives a flight request. The pilot takes a quick glance at their favorite weather source. The display shows the point of departure as "green," (indicated by the green dot on the weather platform). There’s another green dot near the destination. What more do you need? "It's all green!"
[Read More...]
Tags:
asos
aviation weather
awos
flight category colors
green dot syndrome
Categories:
Safety