Features Procedures Safety & Training
Tinkering Around the Edges

This is the third edition of the new-look Helicopters. Since the format
was launched earlier this year the magazine has been on display at two
major North American trade shows – Heli- Expo in Las Vegas and HAC in
Ottawa – and has made several guest appearances at related industry
events across Canada. By and large, the feedback has been positive.
Readers are happy to see we have held onto several popular features
such as Geoff Goodyear's column and last-page staple, A Look Back, and
have reincarnated 'Rotor Rookie' Leanne Schmidt as an advice columnist
for students and fledgling pilots. Kenneth Armstrong will continue to
take time out of his busy court schedule (as an expert witness in both
Canada and the US) to provide an experienced and sometimes
controversial look at helicopter operations.

What was missing,
many of you told us, were profiles of industry players. We had
deliberately eschewed that approach because there are more great
stories in the Canadian helicopter industry than there are issues of
Helicopters or pages to tell them. Who do you pick? But as Geoff
Goodyear wisely told us, you can't tell any of Canada's stories if you
don't start telling a few.

And so the process begins. Our
profiles will be geographically balanced and selected on the basis of
whether a story fits into the overarching theme of each issue; has news
value; or highlights a method of operation in a particular industry
segment that will be of interest to our readers and perhaps a source
for best practices. We start in this issue with Alberta’s Bighorn
Helicopters Flight School, Quebec-based Guardian Glass and
Vancouver-based London Air Services

In addition to profiles, we
have added two new interview segments to the mix. Take 5, which appears
in On The Fly, is a down-and-dirty five-question snapshot of the
industry by some of the key players. One On One provides insightful
interviews with some of Canada's top helicopter executives, beginning
with HAC president Brian Jenner. Speaking of Brian, one feature newly
absent is HAC News. Advances in communication technology and rapid-fire
changes in the industry have caused a rethink in how HAC News should be
distributed. The Association felt it can reach its members more
effectively through electronic mail than in a quarterly magazine.
Helicopters is proud of its relationship with HAC and while we will
miss Brian's newsletter, we are confident that his opinions and
insights will continue to appear in these pages.

Finally, in the
most recent Helicopters Flight Training Directory (April/May/June 2004)
we inadvertently included Mr. Colin Sullivan as chief flight instructor
for Gateway Helicopters and Canadore College. Mr. Sullivan had passed
away the previous year. This error was doubly unfortunate given that we
had run an obituary in the January/February/March 2004 issue.

We
strive to keep our directories accurate and up-to-date and deeply
regret failing to have done so on this occasion. I appreciate how
upsetting such an error must be to Mr. Sullivan's family, and apologize
to all concerned.