Alexandria, Va. (January 9, 2017) – Helicopter Association International (HAI) announced today that Nick Mayhew, senior program manager, L3 Link Simulation and Training, is the 2017 winner of HAI’s Salute to Excellence W.A. “Dub” Blessing Flight Instructor of the Year Award (sponsored by H. Ross Perot, Jr. and the Perot family). The award will be presented at HAI’s Salute to Excellence Awards dinner at HAI HELI-EXPO 2017 in Dallas.
Mayhew’s commitment to improving the safety and image of the professional flight instructor is demonstrated day in and day out. In addition to his own work as a flight instructor, he strives to instill the highest level of professionalism when mentoring other flight instructors. His dedication to detail and “doing the right thing” is a testament to his character and work ethic. As chair of the U.S. Helicopter Safety Team (USHST) Training Work Group, Mayhew has been instrumental in leading major projects to completion. Mayhew has been a strong advocate for improving pilot performance related to autorotations and emergency procedures training. Through the USHST Training Working Group, Mayhew and his team have been tenacious in advising on several FAA and industry best practices for protecting pilots and instructors while performing these maneuvers.
Over the past several years, he has helped breathe life into the Helicopter Certificated Flight Instructor Special Emphasis Program — aimed at addressing safety concerns — in collaboration with the FAA’s Orlando Flight Standards District Office, Bristow Academy and other Florida-based flight schools. He continues to work tirelessly to promote this program nationally in order to strengthen its purpose and benefits. Mayhew has also been a leader in setting up the “Reel Safety” library of five-minute video clips on the International Helicopter Safety Team and USHST websites, designed to help pilots better understand subjects such as autorotations, risk management, preflight planning, inadvertent entry into instrument meteorological conditions and emergency procedures training. He has sponsored the development of more than a dozen action-packed educational videos, with more to be released soon.
The award will be presented at the annual Salute to Excellence Awards dinner during HAI HELI-EXPO 2017. HAI HELI-EXPO®, the world’s largest helicopter trade show and exhibition, will be held at the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center in Dallas, March 6–9, with the exhibit hall open March 7–9. For more information on HAI HELI-EXPO 2017, visit heliexpo.rotor.org.
HAI is the professional trade association for the civil helicopter industry. HAI’s 1,500+ organizational members and 1,800 individual members safely operate more than 4,500 helicopters approximately 2.3 million hours each year in more than 73 nations. HAI is dedicated to the promotion of the helicopter as a safe, effective method of commerce and to the advancement of the international helicopter community.
