ROTORWA H
VAI BRIEFS
VAI CEO Keeps Learning at Robinson Safety Course
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■ Vertical aviation manufacturers and suppliers from all around the world, including the major airframe, engine, and technology OEMs
■ A complete education program, including long-form education courses, shorter education sessions on safety and business topics, and manufacturer techni- cal briefings
■ Industry meetings, including with VAI working groups, on every topic important to the vertical avia- tion industry
■ An industry job fair and Mil2Civ workshop ■ Plenty of opportunities to expand your network and reconnect with old friends.
Will my membership dues change? We have no plans to change VAI membership dues at this time.
What about HAI’s publications, ROTOR magazine and ROTOR Daily? VAI will continue to publish the association’s quarterly magazine and daily e-news- letter. Updated and rede- signed versions of each will be launched later this year. In the meantime, current subscribers will continue to receive the publications.
THIS PAST JANUARY, JAMES VIOLA, VAI’s president and CEO and a dual-rated pilot, attended the Robinson Helicopter Co. (RHC) Pilot Safety Course for the R66 in Torrance, California. His key takeaway: manufacturer safety courses remain valuable, no matter your experi- ence level. “I first attended the course in 2006 and went back
every other year for my CFI renewal, then I got busy [working for] the FAA and, later, HAI,” Viola shares. “Working with the US Helicopter Safety Team, International Helicopter Safety Team, and Vertical Aviation Safety Team, I realized it had been a while since I’d been to the Robinson course, and I was inter- ested to see how it has evolved.” Viola found that much had changed. The late Frank
Robinson, the company’s founder, used to speak directly with attendees at the beginning of every course, while Tim Tucker, an FAA designated pilot exam- iner, conducted the class. Now, RHC President Kurt Robinson, Frank’s son, talks with attendees for the first hour of the course, about aircraft accidents. Afterward, Bob Muse, chief safety instructor, takes the reins. Besides the R66, the 3.5-day course is also available
“I guarantee that attending the manufacturer safety course for the aircraft you fly will almost always teach you something you didn’t know before.”
—James Viola, VAI president and CEO
Where should I go to get more information, renew my membership, or update my member profile? We’re working on a brand-new website,
verticalavi.org, but it’s not ready yet. We expect to roll out the new website by August 2024, but don’t worry—in the mean- time, you can use either the association’s new Web address,
verticalavi.org, or its current one,
rotor.org, to access your VAI member account. During our transition to the new website, both Web addresses will take users to the site currently in use.
18 ROTOR MARCH 2024
for the R22 and R44 and includes a flight with one of Robinson’s safety pilots. Having previously attended the latter two courses, Viola signed up for the R66 class this time. “I found the level of people in the class fascinating,” Viola recalls. “It was a very international group of peo- ple at all levels of skill, and everyone was deeply focused on the course. I got the feeling none of them were there because they had to be there; they were there because they wanted to be there.”
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