T
he employee commitment at Erickson Inc. is like that of a great sports team. The employees are the athletes, the coaches, and even the fans. The
term “bad ass” is thrown around amongst employees. They proudly display the company colors and act upon the company culture with personal commitment. In 50 years of business, Erickson has become legendary as an original equipment manufacturer (OEM), maintenance, repair, and overhaul (MRO) operation, and aerial services company.
A common phrase heard among Erickson employees is “bleeding orange,” which demonstrates the team’s tenaciousness and drive for safety and service. With nearly 800 employees working worldwide, they strive to save both people and property through aerial firefighting and defense missions, while also accomplishing civil aviation services with heavy-lift helicopters. They do this with capable hands and an eye on the mission.
The cornerstone of the company is aerial firefighting with the S-64 Air Crane®
helicopter, but Erickson offers many other important industrial and lifesaving services.
If there was ever a mission as serious as that of military operations, it would be the work that Erickson does on a day-to-day basis in countries like the United States, Greece, Italy, Korea, and Australia.
Like most companies, Erickson Inc. has had its ups-and- downs. They’ve had to fight for principles while driving through market restrictions and competition. They’ve had to prove their mettle repeatedly on the world stage. After 50 years, Erickson has had a few bumps and bruises, but it has withstood the challenges and has grown to thrive. The future is coming — and it’s orange.
LAUNCHING THE COMPANY IN 1971
Fall of 1972
Jack Erickson, founder of Erickson Air-Crane (now known as Erickson Incorporated) was born into a family of entrepreneurs. Erickson’s father owned a logging company. With family roots in logging, Jack Erickson was determined that there should be a better way to log mountaintops. In 1969, Erickson started talking with his friend Wes Lamatta about establishing a timber harvesting pilot program using helicopters with the U.S. Forest Service. (Lamatta later founded Columbia Helicopters.) They thought that helicopters would be the best way to access the land and off-load the massive logs. Erickson started with a Sikorsky S-61 on a lease, and then started using the Sikorsky CH-54 Skycrane helicopter, and Lamatta used the Boeing 234 Chinook, a large tandem, rotor-wing helicopter.
1964 | CH-54A with the 478th Aviation Company at Fort Benning, GA
52
Jan/Feb 2022
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84 |
Page 85 |
Page 86 |
Page 87 |
Page 88 |
Page 89 |
Page 90 |
Page 91 |
Page 92
