hwump-thwump-thwump. The noise from rotor blades is hard to ignore as choppers fly overhead. They could be on their way to any number of important jobs. Helicopters play a critical role in emergency services, including search and rescue, medical evacuations, and firefighting. Helicopters transport equipment and provide access to remote construction sites. They are employed in logging operations, aerial surveys, and geological studies. Helicopters facilitate the study of Arctic environments, wildlife, and various scientific fields. Helicopters are vital in the travel and tourism industry, offering distinctive scenic tours and access to remote locations such as glaciers and wildlife observation sites. Alaska’s oil and gas industry also relies on helicopters. Alyeska Pipeline Service Company engages aviation providers for integrity surveillance and emergency preparedness along the 800-mile route.

The multidimensional maneuverability of rotorcraft suits them to tasks that fixed-wing airplanes can’t match, so helo drivers have set up shop to satisfy that demand. Here are some examples.

One of the contractors Alyeska Pipeline relies on is Alpha Aviation. Based in Anchorage, Alpha Aviation’s mission is “fueled by a pursuit of excellence to deliver specialized comprehensive helicopter services with the utmost professionalism and commitment to safety of flight,” according to the company.

It operates a diverse fleet to meet the needs of each client. Models include the AS350 A Star B2 and B3 (the latter capable of summiting Mount Everest), the tall-masted Robinson R44 and R66, and the ol’ reliable Bell UH-1H Huey.

Alpha Aviation can inspect infrastructure efficiently within a single day while minimizing environmental impact. Utility services encompass powerline patrol, installation of lightning arrestors, tower construction, emergency response, equipment hauling, crew transport, and bird deterrence.

Biologists utilize Alpha Aviation’s services for fish and wildlife studies and population surveys. Helicopters serve scientists with camp setup, wildlife tracking, and environmental cleanup.

For land management across the state, Alpha Aviation provides support for aerial mapping and surveying, road mapping and planning, and aerial tree seeding and fertilizing.

Alaska attracts filmmakers and photographers, and Alpha Aviation provides them with a bird’s-eye platform. Alpha Aviation partners with production crews for commercials, documentaries, extreme ski films, feature films, local news reporting, and music videos.

Adventure brings tourists to remote rivers and lakes where trout and salmon abound, so Alpha Aviation offers heli-fishing services. Alpha Aviation also caters to heli-hiking, helicopter flightseeing, glacier dogsled tours, glacier hiking, wildlife tours, and custom adventures from its home base at Merrill Field in Anchorage as well as Talkeetna and the Knik Glacier valley.

Based at Wasilla Airport, Soloy Helicopters has a long history of operating helicopters in Alaska and the Lower 48. The company founded by Jan and Chris Soloy in 1979 focuses on working closely with clients to ensure a successful outcome for every project.

Soloy Helicopters operates the AS350 B2 and B3, Robinson R44, the civilian Huey variant Bell 205, the “flying egg”-shaped MD 500D, and the twin-engine Kawasaki BK 117 B2. The company has received approvals for more than twenty-five modifications to its aircraft, such as cargo racks, seating installations, darting or shooting windows, and tundra pads. Soloy also has experience adapting customer installations, including airborne geophysics platforms, camera and film installations, antennas and trackers, and litter kit installations.

Soloy Helicopters takes pride in precision long-line work. Soloy’s pilots who oversee the long-line work average more than 7,000 hours of experience with dangling loads.

Other specialty services include helicopter support for wildland firefighting covering more than 70 million acres of Alaska wilderness. Soloy also specializes in mineral exploration support, from claims staking and drilling to construction, development, and production.

Soloy partners with two premier heli-ski companies in Southcentral to serve adventurous passengers. Private charters are also available and often utilized for filming projects of various sizes.

Jim Acher, the owner of Northern Pioneer Helicopters in Big Lake, has flown helicopters in Alaska for more than thirty years. The company’s fleet includes the AS350 A Star B3, the UH-1B Huey, its US Marine Corps cousin the UH-1E, and the big lifter: a Sikorsky UH-60A, otherwise known as the Black Hawk. Northern Pioneer Helicopters specializes in external load and passenger hauling throughout the state. Additionally, Northern Pioneer is available for a range of helicopter services including transport, firefighting, and aircraft salvage.

When a fixed-wing or rotor aircraft goes down, chances are the accident scene is reachable only by helicopter. Regardless of severity, the wreckage must be packed out. Northern Pioneer’s professional aircraft salvage services are available to rescue and retrieve planes. The company properly secures and slings the airplane for helicopter transit even in remote locations.

Northern Pioneer’s comprehensive cargo transportation service can accommodate loads up to 8,000 pounds. One of the company’s noteworthy jobs involved the transport of a 30-foot custom-built catamaran for the Kodiak Brown Bear Center. The client needed the catamaran delivered to Karluk Lake on Kodiak Island, so Northern Pioneer carried the load in three 4,000-pound segments on the final leg of the journey from the shipyard in Port Angeles, Washington.

For decades, Northern Pioneer has provided aerial firefighting services in collaboration with state and federal agencies, operating in challenging environments. With the capability to transport 4,000 pounds of water per trip and deliver it with reliable precision, the company’s proficient crew expedites turnaround times, maximizes the number of drops per hour, and minimizes flight time.

Since 1991, Alpine Air Alaska has promoted “the great Alaskan experience” to adventure-seeking tourists from around the world. From glacier landings and dogsledding to flightseeing, weddings, and special events, Alpine Air caters to its customers’ needs.

In addition to flying R44s, Alpine Air Alaska maintains the local Robinson Helicopter Service Center. From its base in Girdwood, the company also flies charters in Valdez for utility services across various industries. These include government and private industry support services; cargo and equipment transport; environmental studies support; external loads and precision long-line; fuel transport; mapping and surveying; telecommunications; and photo, film, and video production.

Long range is a specialty at Homer-based Maritime Helicopters. The company operates the Bell 206 LongRanger, capable of flying 274 miles, and its four-bladed derivative, the Bell 407, with a range of 337 miles. The fleet also includes the agile twin-engine Bo 105 with a stretched fuselage and a range of 287 miles.

Established in 1973, Maritime takes jobs in the Interior, the North Slope, Southeast, and in the Western Aleutians.

Maritime’s main base at the Homer Airport features a lighted helipad, a 4,800-square-foot heated hangar, 2,000-gallon jet fuel truck, and 24-hour jet fuel service. A second customer service facility is located on the north side of Metro Field in Fairbanks with a lighted helipad, 12,000-square-foot heated hangar, and a 10,000-gallon, above-ground jet fuel tank. Satellite locations include Akutan, Kenai, Kodiak, Valdez.

Maritime provides support for construction, environmental, film, medical, surveying, and oil and gas industries, as well as assisting volcano studies and wildlife survey and capture.

Coastal Helicopters in Juneau started as a division of Alaska Coastal Airlines in 1988, providing services to the US Forest Service with a Bell 206. Jim Wilson joined the company later that year, flying air taxi jobs during winter months, and subsequently became a partner in the business. Jim and his wife Dot then acquired the assets of Alaska Coastal Helicopters to establish Coastal Helicopters.

Coastal Helicopters currently operates a fleet of thirteen helicopters: Bell 206s and AS350s. The company provides helicopter tours catering to the travel and tourism sector. Additionally, Coastal Helicopters offers local support services, including work for the US Forest Service, AT&T, Alaska Electric Light and Power, and Alaska Power & Telephone.

In addition to tour excursions, Coastal Helicopters offers private helicopter charter and contract services. Coastal Helicopters’ pilots and mechanics are available for contracts including avalanche mitigation, construction projects, firefighting, remote site access, surveying, and scientific research.

For his service to Southeast, Jim Wilson was awarded a special honor from his fellow rotorheads. In 1996, the Helicopter Association International (now Vertical Aviation International) named him “Pilot of the Year,” marking the first time since 1960 that an Alaskan received this recognition.