Airbus Helicopters North America is proud to sponsor the following scholarships and awards on an annual basis:
Whirly-Girls - Inadvertent Instrument Meteorological Conditions (IIMC) Training Scholarship
This scholarship is given to two women from Whirly-Girls annually, so that they can attend the Inadvertent Instrument Meteorological Conditions (IIMC) course at Airbus Helicopters in Grand Prarie, TX.
Whirly-Girls is a nonprofit company whose goal is to help women succeed in their helicopter aviation careers. At Airbus we too passionately believe in this mission of helping women thrive in their professions, which is why we are delighted to sponsor this scholarship.
HAI - Bill Sanderson Aviation Maintenance Technician Scholarship
The Bill Sanderson AMT Scholarship provides full tuition to complete a maintenance course from a selection of courses offered by various airframe and power plant manufacturers. The award includes a monetary stipend of $500 to $1,600 to assist with travel, lodging, and food. Up to six scholarships may be awarded annually.
USAIG and Airbus Helicopters North America Training Center Expand Safety Collaboration, Offer Free IIMC Pilot Course Incentive
USAIG and Airbus Helicopters North America (AHNA) have a robust tradition of teaming to encourage helicopter operators to consistently participate in high-quality recurrent training endorsed by the manufacturers of their aircraft. The AHNA Training Center in Grand Prairie, TX has long been a USAIG Safety Bucks program participant. That program enables policyholders with turbine-powered helicopters under coverage to select $2500 in Safety Bucks—a contribution the operator can assign to the participating training center of their choice—to go toward helicopter pilot or maintenance technician training expenses in each year of qualifying policy coverage.
USAIG started the Safety Bucks program in the 1990s to assist and incentivize policyholders to make recurrent helicopter simulator training standard practice. It was eventually expanded to include helicopter maintenance technician training and some in-aircraft training activities. In 2015 it was integrated into USAIG’s broader Performance Vector safety initiative, which provides a portfolio of safety services from which eligible policyholders can make one annual selection. “Safety Bucks is a great option as the annual safety benefit for many of our helicopter policyholders,” said Paul Ratte, USAIG’s Aviation Safety Programs Director, adding, “it meaningfully boosts the reach and positive impact of their safety and training budgets, and that’s a role we are proud to play.”
The AHNA Training Center in Texas boasts a wide range of opportunities for operators to apply Safety Bucks. The training center leverages its experienced instructors and modernized fleet of company-owned training aircraft and training devices to deliver world-class initial and recurrent maintenance and flight training courses for the light through heavy range of Airbus Helicopters models. The AHNA Training Center looks forward to the upcoming rollout a new level D H145 Full Flight Simulator by its simulation partner Helisim LLC, which already owns and operates AS350, EC135, and EC145 simulation devices. These simulators complement Airbus Helicopters’ initial, recurrent, and safety courses like the Inadvertent Instrument Meteorological Conditions (IIMC) course, which was designed to combat an increasing number of fatal IIMC accidents by providing pilots with effective avoidance and recovery techniques.
USAIG, Airbus Helicopters, and Helisim recognize that IIMC training addresses a critical safety threat faced by the entire helicopter industry. That triggered a discussion about how USAIG could encourage its policyholders to have pilots attend the IIMC course, and a limited-time opportunity was born. USAIG and the AHNA Training Center will extend the value of a $2500 USAIG Safety Bucks certificate to fully cover one pilot’s full IIMC course tuition (currently a $3900 value). Safety Bucks will retain their standard face value when applied to any other AHNA Training Center courses. “We believe the IIMC course is a must-have for any helicopter pilot,” said Lindsay Cunningham, Head of Customer Training for AHNA, “and this limited-time offer is a great way for operators who are USAIG policyholders to benefit from the course while deriving maximum advantage from their Safety Bucks.”
For more details on this limited-time opportunity, please contact your USAIG representative or contact the AHNA Training Center in Grand Prairie, TX.