Apr
27
2015
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Posted by Admin
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RPMN: What is your current position?
I am the aviation standardization officer for 97th Aviation Troop Command (similar to a brigade) and the senior standardization instructor pilot (SIP) in the AH-64D Apache Longbow for the Utah National Guard. I have been in the Army for over 35 years, flying the Apache for nearly 30 years. In my position, I oversee the flight training of all Apache pilots in Utah. Prior to joining the Guard, I was on active duty for 12 years and also have experience flying the AH-1 Cobra (as an IP), OH-58 Kiowa Scout, UH-1 Huey, and UH-60 Blackhawk.
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Categories:
Human Interest
Helicopter Sectors
Apr
22
2015
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Posted by Admin
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In the 1989 movie Field of Dreams, Kevin Costner hears ghostly voices coming from his Iowa cornfield telling him, “If you build it they will come,” meaning he should build a baseball diamond and former members from the Chicago Black Sox would come. Each day for the two months that I worked building a crew resource management instructor’s course, a similar line kept replaying in my head: What if I build it and no one comes?
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Categories:
Training
Safety
Helicopter Sectors
Apr
20
2015
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Posted by Admin
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As a member of the U.S. Helicopter Safety Team (USHST) Safety Management System (SMS) Working Group, we attempt to provide helicopter professionals with useful ideas and tools to help with their SMS implementation and sustainment. As you might imagine, the needs of aviation programs can vary widely depending on the size and scope of the operation. Despite the FAA’s reluctance to regulate SMS for other than Part 121 operators in the U.S., many proactive aviation companies and agencies have voluntarily begun their own implementation with varied results. By now, most of us in this industry are familiar with SMS and its four pillars: (1) safety policy (2) safety risk management (3) safety assurance (4) safety promotion. (If these four components aren’t familiar to you, it’s time to get out of the cave and see the light!) These items are interrelated and are the essential framework for an organization’s SMS program.
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Categories:
Safety
Training
Apr
20
2015
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Posted by Admin
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2015 promises to be an exciting year in helicopter development, as OEMs push the envelope on advanced technologies to deliver more speed, higher flight ceilings, and improved fuel efficiency. Here are some of the most exciting trends to watch for over the next 12 months, some of which will be seen at Heli-Expo 2015.
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Categories:
Helicopter Event Coverage
Company Profiles
“The doctor told me I’d never walk again,” former Utah flight nurse Stein Rosqvist told the group with obvious emotion. “I saw that wheelchair being pushed towards me down the corridor and said, ‘That’s definitely not for me.’”
Through months of physical therapy by a nurse that would not permit him to say, “I can’t,” Stein walks today. His is just one of the stories I heard during the three-day digital story workshop I attended recently in Denver, Colorado.
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Categories:
Training
Safety
Helicopter Sectors
The FAA requires all initial pilot certificate applicants (except ATP) to demonstrate cross-country proficiency during a practical test. The Practical Test Standard (PTS) Area of Operation identifying the proficiency to be demonstrated is titled “Navigation.” Tasks included within this section of the PTS are pilotage and dead reckoning, radio navigation and radar services, diversion, and lost procedures. This portion of the exam is intended to verify that the student has sufficient knowledge to fly a helicopter safely outside of his or her local flying area.
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Categories:
Training
Safety
Apr
06
2015
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Posted by Admin
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In today's safety culture, zeroing in on the “who and what” of unsafe acts has become the new priority—again. Companies have been working overtime to arrive at a common safety destination, or to target specific safety practices in an effort to reduce the number of incidents. Yet, injuries still occur and aircraft are still damaged.
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Categories:
Safety
Training
Mar
30
2015
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Posted by Admin
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In 1995, former U.S. Army helicopter pilot Greg Rochna, along with his wife Brenda, made a decision to try and build a better helicopter tour company in a very competitive market. It was a bold mission, considering that the Las Vegas/Grand Canyon helicopter tour market was well established and dominated by several mature players. As it turns out, the couple’s decision to start Maverick Helicopters was one of the best business decisions of their lives.
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Categories:
Career Development
Company Profiles
Helicopter Sectors
Mar
16
2015
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Posted by Admin
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RPMN: What is your current position?
After spending nearly several years in the HEMS industry, I just recently started flying for a sheriff’s office in southwest Ohio (Cincinnati). I came out of an EC145 in HEMS and am now in an MD500E and MD520N. I greatly enjoyed HEMS, however, it is nice wiggling the stick again and not just pushing buttons and turning knobs. My current position is never boring and allows me to fly much more than I did as a HEMS pilot.
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Categories:
Human Interest
Mar
09
2015
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Posted by Admin
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As an AH-64 Apache orbits overhead, the radio crackles to life as someone shouts, "Incoming!" A half second later, a rocket-propelled grenade impacts within yards of a military convoy. Fortunately, personnel on the ground have just enough time to dive for cover. The majority of shrapnel hits sand, with the rest spraying into rocks scattered along the far side of the road.
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Categories:
Training
Safety
Helicopter Sectors