Erickson has secured FAA approval for the use of night vision goggles (NVG) on the S-64F Air Crane.

The approval represents a key component of the company’s NVG initiative.

To develop the capability, Erickson worked with Aviation Specialties Unlimited (ASU) to modify the aircraft for NVG operations.

As part of the programme, Erickson’s pilots were trained on NVGs via ASU. With the aircraft modifications and pilot certifications having been completed in March, the FAA certification was completed last month.

Accordingly, NVG operations were included as part of Erickson’s annual spring training event, with a variety of drops using multiple coverage level options. A variety of filling techniques performed in the S-64 included ground fill, pond snorkel hover release into an open water source and hover fill, as well as tank fill operations.

This was a multi-agency event, with the FAA and US Forest Service on site, observing the training. In addition, the Crook County Fire Department was on site, providing ground fill for the S-64 tank and simultaneously conducting required helicopter coordination training and sign-offs.

 

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