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FROM THE DESK OF THE PUBLISHER


NIGHTCON 2011 A SUCCESS Now that NightCon 2011 has come and gone, we are very


proud to announce that the event was not only a success, but quite possibly could become the premier event in the night flight business. The level of participation, from regulators, operators, industry experts and pilots, far exceeded our expectations. Later in this issue you will find an article by Dave Oglesbee that gives a nice “observer’s” perspective of how the event turned out. Needless to say, we are already quickly preparing for NightCon 2012. Expect an announce- ment during the Air Medical Transportation Conference in St. Louis.


TRAGEDY ON THE EAST RIVER This business is risky, sometimes tragically so. Recently


we learned of another deadly accident in New York City’s East River. Again, many in the local media have chimed in as to the cause, quoted ‘so called’ experts, and fed the hysteria in a very irresponsible manner. Unfortunately, very little can be done to prevent over-eager journalists from jumping to une- ducated conclusions. The effect is not only damaging to our industry, it is disrespectful of those who may have lost their loved ones. All we, as an industry, can do is reach out to the mainstream media and do our best to inform and educate.


AMTC 2011 In mid-October several thousand Air Medical folks will


converge upon St. Louis for the annual Air Medical Transportation Conference. Each year the Association of Air Medical Services puts on a first-class show full of high-qual- ity presentations and educational opportunities. This year will undoubtedly be no different. Stop by Booth 506 and say Hi to the RPMN team.


WELCOME I’d like to take a few minutes to formally welcome Brig


Bearden and Billy Thompson to our team here at Rotorcraft Professional. Brig has come on board to take the new posi- tion of Group Publisher. As such he will oversee all the pub- lishing operations of Oak Mountain Media’s many media products. Billy has accepted the position of Associate Publisher of Rotorcraft Professional. Both of these gentlemen bring many years of publishing experience to our team, and we could not be happier to have them join us. Welcome, and good luck.


Best Regards,


Ron Whitney


GROUP PUBLISHER Brig Bearden


brig@rotorcraftpro.com


ASSOCIATE PUBLISHER Billy Thompson


billy@rotorcraftpro.com


DIR. BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT Butch Cole


butch@rotorcraftpro.com


ONLINE EDITOR Lyn Burks


lyn.burks@rotorcraftpro.com


PUBLISHER/EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Ron Whitney


ron@rotorcraftpro.com


COPY EDITOR Ashley Dempsey


ashley@rotorcraftpro.com


CREATIVE DIRECTOR Dana Maxfield


dana@rotorcraftpro.com


MANAGER, ONLINE ACCOUNTS Lynette Burks


lynette@rotorcraftpro.com


VICE PRESIDENT/CFO Clay Branum


clay@rotorcraftpro.com


VICE PRESIDENT/CAO Rick Weatherford


rick@rotorcraftpro.com


PHOTOGRAPHER Sarah Kritner


sarah@rotorcraftpro.com


CIRCULATION DIRECTOR Pam Fulmer


pam@rotorcraftpro.com 3


Rotorcraft Professional®


is published twelve times a year and


mailed out on or around the 20th of the month being covered by Oak Mountain Media, LLC, 2080 Valleydale Road, Suite 10, Hoover, Alabama 35244. Rotorcraft Professional®


is distributed free to qual-


ified subscribers. Non-qualified subscription rates are $57.00 per year in the U.S. and Canada and $84.00 per year for foreign sub- scribers (surface mail). U.S. Postage paid at Birmingham, Alabama and additional mailing offices. Rotorcraft Professional®


is distributed to qualified readers in the


helicopter industry. Publisher is not liable for all content (including editorial and illustrations provided by advertisers) of advertisements published and does not accept responsibility for any claims made against the publisher.


to obtain appropriate releases on any item or individuals pictured in an advertisement. Reproduction of this magazine in whole or in part is prohibited without prior written permission from the publisher.


POSTMASTER: Send address changes to: Oak Mountain Media, LLC, 2080 Valleydale Road, Suite 10 Hoover, Alabama 35244


Ron Whitney PRESIDENT It is the advertiser’s or agency’s responsibility Executive Offices


2080 Valleydale Road, Ste. 10 Hoover, AL 35244 Toll Free: 877.768.5550 Fax: 205.978.2925


www.rotorcraftpro.com ROTORCRAFTPRO.COM


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