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Dec
30
2019
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Posted by Admin
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Rotorcraft Pro highlights industry leaders who have contributed to help better the helicopter community in 2019 in our Best of Safety, Best of Education, Best of People and the Best of Legacy series.
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Categories:
Career Development
Human Interest
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Dec
24
2019
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Posted by Admin
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10. Be humble. So, you’re a military helicopter pilot with combat time – that’s nice. Do not assume you know anything about commercial flying; there’s a lot to learn and people much younger than you may be showing you the ropes. Be respectful of their time and energy getting you up to speed. Be humble, this is a very small industry. Make a name for yourself right away and be sure it’s a good one; it will likely stick with you for a very long time.
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Categories:
Career Development
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Dec
16
2019
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Posted by Admin
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jək-stə-pə-ˈzi-shən
I love the word “juxtaposition.” Merriam-Webster says it means an instance of placing two or more things side by side often to compare or contrast. It’s not a word I often use, but typically at the end of every year, I find myself juxtaposing two periods of time: the past and the present.
Although I love change and technology, every once in a while I enjoy reflecting on the helicopter industry and contrasting the past to the present to reflect on how far we’ve come.
2019 is a special year for Rotorcraft Pro. We are celebrating our 10-year anniversary working on the magazine side of our media company.
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Dec
09
2019
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Posted by Admin
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No, we’re not talking about a slow-speed chase down a California highway; rather, your lost and sometimes forgotten aircraft battery. Without it, your day will never properly start.
With the advent of improved technology, lead-acid batteries are becoming more commonplace in turbine-powered helicopters. And while lead-acids have certain advantages over the original NiCad batteries, a number of “operational” differences could reduce the effect and value of those advantages.
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Categories:
Helicopter Sectors
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Dec
09
2019
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Posted by Admin
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STAR (Shock Trauma Air Rescue) Flight is the Air Operations Division of Travis County, Texas. It is a public safety air rescue program that is unique because it performs critical transport, firefighting, rescue, and limited law enforcement support. STAR Flight is based in Austin and serves not only the citizens of Travis County, but also 19 other counties within a 75-mile radius. Many of its calls are to assist those who are experiencing medical problems or suffering from traumatic injuries from motor vehicle crashes or other activities. When requested, STAR Flight regularly transports very sick patients in rural hospitals to larger, better-equipped hospitals.
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Categories:
Company Profiles
Helicopter Sectors
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Nov
25
2019
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Posted by Admin
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For over two decades, Precision Aircraft Services (PAS) has been steadily building and maintaining a reputation as a top-tier avionics and maintenance shop. Located at Atlanta Regional Airport in Peachtree City, the company garnered the Garmin Award for Performance Excellence and in 2013 became an Authorized Dealer and Service Center for Robinson Helicopters. The next year, PAS became an Authorized Service Center for Airbus Helicopters. The subsidiary of Precision Aviation Group (PAG) is now an avionics dealer for over 80 manufacturers, and is known for its 24/7 service availability. At the helm of this smoothly running maintenance machine is Precision Aircraft Services Vice President and General Manager Mark Tyler, perhaps the only vice president we’ve profiled that keeps a toolbox within reach as a stressbuster. “If it gets too stressful in the office, I get out there and turn some wrenches to relax,” he says.
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Categories:
Company Profiles
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Nov
18
2019
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Posted by Admin
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In the world of rotorcraft emergencies, not all situations are equal. There’s a huge difference between a generator failure, engine fire or anti-torque system failure. I think if you were to poll pilots, just the mention of certain crises will make the hair stand up on the back of every pilot’s neck, and they pray that it never will happen to them. For me, there are two such crises: a tail-rotor gearbox failure, and any situation that would cause me to hit the ground hard enough to rupture a fuel tank and spark a post-crash fire.
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Categories:
Safety
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Nov
11
2019
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Posted by Admin
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Dr. Travis Bradberry, the award-winning coauthor of the #1 best selling book, Emotional Intelligence 2.0, and the cofounder of TalentSmart, a consultancy that serves more than 75% of Fortune 500 companies, once said, “Influential people are never satisfied with the status quo. They’re the ones who constantly ask, ‘What if?’ and ‘Why not?’ They’re not afraid to challenge conventional wisdom and they don’t disrupt things for the sake of being disruptive; they do it to make things better.”
Ron Abbott, owner of Evolution Helmets is definitely a disruptor in his business field; if you need evidence, look no further than his recent endeavor to enter another competitive space: aviation flight suits. Abbott, a U.S. military veteran, 22,000-hour helicopter pilot, and designer/manufacturer of the Evolution brand of flight helmets, has now developed a line of flight suits to complement the company’s helmet business. Evolution Flight Suits are made in the USA and is owned by Evolution Aviation Helmets, but associated with Sisley Clothing Australia and United Designs.
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Categories:
Company Profiles
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Nov
02
2019
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Posted by Admin
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It wasn’t expected to happen: The world’s insatiable thirst for oil and gas should have ensured that more offshore oil rigs would always be needed, and that suppliers who supported those rigs – like helicopter companies – would always have a secure, stable market to serve.
But then it happened: Oil prices unexpectedly plummeted “from a peak of $115 per barrel in June 2014 to under $35 at the end of February 2016,” states the World Economic Forum website. “The sharp fall is broadly similar in magnitude to the decline in 1985-1986, when OPEC members reversed earlier production cuts, and in 2008-09 at the outset of the global financial crisis.”
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Categories:
Helicopter Sectors
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Oct
28
2019
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Posted by Admin
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Looking back at my 26-year Army career, I have many things to be proud of, and only one regret. Before getting accepted to Army Warrant Officer Candidate School (WOCS) and then U.S. Army Flight School as a newly minted Warrant Officer One (W1), I was an Army Crew-chief/technician. I first worked on Cobras, and then moved on to Black Hawks and Little Birds (MD500). This leads me to my regret: before getting accepted to WOC School I was working on my FAA Airframe & Powerplant (A&P) Certificate, but once I was selected, in my short sightedness, I didn’t finish my A&P because I was going to be a pilot and didn’t need my A&P.
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Categories:
Career Development