Pro Scott Tinnesand RP: What is your current position?
My dream job: experimental test pilot and instructor pilot for The Boeing Company in Mesa, Arizona. I primarily fly the AH-64E Apache and AH-6 Little Bird but I get to fly other helicopters and airplanes too, which provides lots of variety. The flight tests we conduct range from benign testing (new radios, software upgrades, etc.) to exciting experimental tests including weapons firing, testing new rotor blades and things of that nature. I work with a great group of pilots and support staff, which truly makes this my dream job. Besides, I do not know many civilian pilots who get to shoot mini guns off helicopters; I consider myself fortunate. On the side, I am also an FAA designated pilot examiner (DPE) in helicopters for private pilot through initial CFI certificates. Arizona’s great weather makes this area perfect for year-round flying, so naturally there is a concentration of flight schools. My other FAA authorizations allow me to do special medical flight tests, military competency activities, foreign pilot license conversions and a few other things. I am active in local aviation organizations including being an FAA Safety Team representative, I am a cochair for the annual HAI Heli-Expo Military to Civilian Transition Workshop, and I work as an expert witness for aircraft accident lawsuits.
RP: Tell me about your first experience with helicopters.
My first helicopter flight was on 15 June 1988 in an H300C at the University of North Dakota in Grand Forks. I had already earned my private pilot airplane
12 Mar/Apr 2023
SEL certificate, but I was extremely excited and could not believe I was going to fly a helicopter! My instructor was George Hammond, an aviation great who flew bombers in WWII and fighters in Vietnam. It was a great experience and I remember it like it was yesterday.
RP: How did you get your start in helicopters?
After high school, I stayed in my hometown in Minnesota and attended community college while working at a paper mill. One day while looking at all the pamphlets on the wall for different colleges and transfer programs, I saw one for the aviation college at the University of North Dakota (UND) with a helicopter on the cover. I started making phone calls immediately and a short time later was enrolled for classes, and I was awarded an academic scholarship through Army ROTC. The scholarship covered flight training so I was off and running as a helicopter pilot! At UND we had a small fleet of H300Cs and two beautiful H500Es.
RP: When and how did you choose to fly or work on helicopters? Or did they choose you?
During my flight training at UND, I knew I wanted to fly helicopters forever. After graduation and commissioning in the Army, I was assigned to the Aviation Branch and began an eight-year stint on active duty as a helicopter pilot. By this point, it confirmed to me that aviation was my thing and I wanted it to be in helicopters.
RP: Where did you get your start flying or maintaining professionally?
Not counting Army military flying, my first civilian flying job was with a gyroplane manufacturer. Not only did I get my gyroplane commercial and CFI, but I got my start at flight testing as well, which turned out to be pivotal to how I got where I am today. I also was introduced to two mentors who played a huge role in my future. After this job, I started working helicopter air ambulance in Arizona and got my first taste of Part 135 work.
RP: If you were not in the helicopter industry, what else would you see yourself doing?
Like most pilots, I really cannot imagine doing anything else. But if I were not in the helicopter industry, I would certainly be flying airplanes, probably as an airline pilot. But I would not be as happy as I am flying helicopters!
RP: What do you enjoy doing on your days off?
What’s a day off?
RP: What is your greatest career accomplishment to date?
I never imagined that I would accomplish all the things that I have during my career, but I do know that I would not be where I am today without mentors in my life. I learned what it means to be a mentor and the power of networking, so I began mentoring others. For that reason, I would say my greatest accomplishment
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