FROM THE DESK OF THE EDITOR Keep on not breaking anything!
When you’re young, you rarely think about the day before, rather always looking ahead to the future. However, at 55 years old, I find myself reflecting on the past a little more these days.
Looking back to my younger years as a pilot, I feel like I was really fortunate to have crossed paths with quality people throughout my career in the helicopter industry — colleagues and friends who tested me, shared insights with me, and opened doors of opportunity for me. All of them had my best interest at heart.
I will never forget the time I asked for my first pay increase as a helicopter pilot. I was piloting a Bell 206 for Aircoastal Helicopters flying news gathering, charter, and utility work. I had been working in that capacity for a little over a year and my plan was to go to the company owner and ask for a $5 per hour pay increase.
On the chosen day, I went into the owner’s office and confidently said, “Danny, I’d like to talk with you about a pay raise.” He calmly replied, “Is that so?” Right then and there, I made my pitch about being a reliable and safe pilot. I think I might have even said, “I haven’t broken anything,” ... as if that was the bar for good performance.
After my pitch, he looked me straight in the eye and said, “How often do you look at your paycheck?” In my mind, I was asking myself why in the heck would he ask me that question, to which I answered, “Uh, never. Why?” That was true; I did not look at
my paychecks. I grabbed the envelope every two weeks and hand delivered it to my wife unopened.
Danny made a few clicks on his computer keyboard as if to verify something. He then chuckled and said, “Well, if you looked at your paychecks, you would have noticed that six months ago I gave you the exact pay raise you are asking for today. You’ve been doing a great job, so keep on not breaking anything!”
I was stunned, humbled, and embarrassed at the same time. I mean, here this guy quietly gave me a raise to thank me for doing a good job. I did not even know it because I was a dope and didn’t look at my checks. I not only apologized to him, but thanked him profusely for the gesture. I learned a great lesson that day when I was 20-something about integrity and doing the right thing — even when there’s a cost.
That gent’s name was Dan Crowe, and he’s one of dozens who played a role in my success in both aviation and business. For those of you who are actively investing time into new aviators, keep it up. They will never forget you.
Thinking back, the only unresolved question is why didn’t my wife notice that I had gotten the pay raise ... or did she?
Lyn Burks, Editor-In-Chief
is published six times a year and mailed out on or around the 10th of every other month by Rotor Pro Media Network Inc. RotorPro®
Rotor Pro® is distributed free to
qualified subscribers. Non-qualified subscription rates are $57.00 per year in the U.S. and Canada, $125.00 per year for foreign subscribers (surface mail). U.S. postage paid at Fall River, Wisconsin, and additional mailing offices.
Publisher is not liable for all content (including
editorial and illustrations provided by advertisers) of ads published, and does not accept responsibility for any claims made against the publisher. It is the advertiser’s or agency’s responsibility to obtain appropriate releases on any item or individuals pictured in ads. Reproduction of this magazine in whole or in part is prohibited without prior written permission from the publisher.
Editor-In-Chief Lyn Burks
lyn.burks@rotorpro.com Account Executives
Teri Rivas
teri.rivas@rotorpro.com Brad Shubargo
brad@rotorpro.com
Circulation Manager
Laura Lentz Layout Design Bryan Matuskey
production@rotorpro.com
Online Accounts Manager Lynnette Burks
lynnette.burks@rotorpro.com Copy Editors
Rick Weatherford
Joanna Nellans Social Media Guru Laura Lentz
Content Creators James Careless Randy Mains Joanna Nellans Jennifer Ferrero Rick Weatherford Wes Van Dell Randy Rowles Mark Tyler Matt Johnson Uros Podlogar
Corporate Officer Lyn Burks, CEO
Mailing Address
949 SW Woodland Ave. Ft. White, FL 32038
Toll Free: 877.768.5550 Fax: 561.424.8036
www.rotorpro.com
4
Nov/Dec 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
