Pro Brandi Rector RPMN: What is your current position?
I am CEO and pilot for both Skyhunter Outfitters and Semper Fly Helicopters. 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.
RPMN: Tell me about your first experience with helicopters.
The first time I ever flew in helicopters was in the Marine Corps. I went in as a helicopter mechanic on the CH-53E and the opportunity arose to become an aerial observer/gunner. I volunteered to go through the training to get my wings, and that was the first time I had ever been in a helicopter. It was the most amazing free feeling and I was hooked right away. After getting out of the Marines, I missed flying so much that I decided to become a pilot. I did my introductory flight and knew that’s what I was meant to do.
RPMN: How did you get your start in helicopters?
I got my start in the Marines. It was one of those things where helicopters had not been on my mind at all. I never considered or even thought of helicopters, but after joining the Marines and getting selected for a helicopter MOS (military occupation specialty), I found a new passion.
RPMN: When and how did you choose to fly or work on helicopters? Or did they choose you?
Prior to joining the military, I never considered anything in
aviation. I had been pursuing a degree in law, but decided it wasn’t active enough. I came to this moment in my life where I wasn’t sure what direction to take or what I even enjoyed doing. I was sitting at my desk, doing a job I didn’t enjoy when I got a recruiting email from the Army (my dad and brother were in the
12 Jan/Feb 2023
RPMN: If you were not in the helicopter industry, what else would you see yourself doing?
I have put a lot of thought into this question, and helicopters have been such a part of my identity for so long that it is tough to think of myself doing anything else. I had been in the hiring process for the FBI before purchasing Skyhunter Outfitters, but backed out when the opportunity arose to own the company. I suppose I would either be doing some government job or selling everything I own and traveling the world. There really isn’t an in-between there.
RPMN: What do you enjoy doing on your days off?
When I am not flying or working on the businesses, I enjoy traveling with my boyfriend, being at home with my horses
Army). I stared at it for a few minutes and called my dad. I asked him what he would think if I joined the military and he said it would be the best thing for me. I had always enjoyed working on cars with my dad and since I didn’t have a degree to go in as an officer, being an aviation mechanic sounded like the perfect fit. I selected that and the Marines selected me for the 53 Program. I had no idea what a CH-53E was and I remember Googling it, trying to figure out what I had gotten myself into. It was the best thing that could have ever happened to me.
RPMN: Where did you get your start flying or maintaining professionally?
I got out of the Marine Corps in late 2014 and got hired by Sikorsky to work on the new CH-53K maintenance program in West Palm Beach, Florida. I lasted six months before I couldn’t take the slow pace and lack of action. I missed being in the air. I started looking at options to go either the police route or pilot route. When I found out my GI Bill would pay for flight training, I was full speed ahead for getting in school and getting started. I’d already gotten my A&P license as I was transitioning out. So while starting and going to school full time to work on my bachelor’s degree in aeronautics, and learning to fly helicopters, I was working as a mechanic for Trans States Airlines. This all started around October 2015.
Meet a otor
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