Episode 303 - Why should I go to the ECHO Public Safety Aviation Conference?

Welcome to the Hangar Z Podcast, brought to you by Vertical HeliCASTS, in partnership with Vertical Valor Magazine.This episode was recorded on location at the ECHO 2025 Public Safety Aviation Conference in Louisville, Kentucky. Listen closely for your chance to win awesome prizes from Heli Life! Throughout 2025, every episode of The Hangar Z Podcast will reveal a secret word. Once you catch it, head to contests.verticalhelicasts.com to enter!This discussion features: Andrew Baity, law enforcement co-director at Every Coast Helicopter Operations (ECHO) and Virginia State Police pilot; Jeff Ratkovich, Hangar Z co-host and pilot for the Tennessee Highway Patrol; and Jack Schonely, instructor of the Tactical Solutions course and retired Los Angeles Police Department officer, helicopter pilot, and Hangar Z host.Here, we debrief the conference by highlighting the training, education, and connections that made ECHO 2025 so exceptional.The cornerstone of the training was the two-day Airborne Tactical Solutions course, taught by Clay Lacy and Jack Schonely and attended by nearly 70 motivated public safety aviation professionals.The "Airborne Tactical Solutions" course provided over 16 hours of comprehensive training for public safety personnel, including patrol officers, tactical flight officers, K-9 handlers, SWAT team members, and aircrew. Through multimedia presentations with real-life video examples, participants learned about contemporary suspect tactics, perimeter containment strategies, and criminal evasion techniques. The course emphasizes officer safety, systematic search techniques, and practical airborne skills like crew coordination, managing vehicle pursuits, and thermal imagery searches. Real-life scenarios and debriefs help reinforce critical incident preparedness and effective communication, ultimately enhancing tactical decision-making and the overall effectiveness of law enforcement operations.Thanks to Bell and Metro Aviation for sponsoring the Tactical Solutions course, as well as Airbus, Axnes, and Dallas Avionics for supporting the generous lunch provided to the students of the Tactical Solutions course. In addition to the two-day Tactical Solutions course, the conference featured a variety of one-hour breakout courses led by a wide range of experts, including Andrew Nicoletti. Thank you to everyone who took the time to prepare for and teach at ECHO 2025.Make sure to look for announcements regarding ECHO’s 2026 conference location and law enforcement educational track in the months to follow.Last, but not least, we extend a heartfelt thank you to ECHO and their leadership team — a group of highly motivated public safety aviation professionals who volunteer their time to provide high-quality, high-fidelity training that is accessible and affordable.Thank you to our sponsors Garmin, Robinson Helicopter and Wysong Enterprises.

Welcome to The Hangar Z Podcast, brought to you by Vertical HeliCASTS, in partnership with Vertical Valor magazine.Listen closely for your chance to win awesome prizes from Heli Life! Throughout 2025, every episode of The Hangar Z Podcast will reveal a secret word. Once you catch it, head to contests.verticalhelicasts.com to enter!In this special episode, we recorded from the floor of APSCON 2025 in Phoenix, Arizona, at the Vertical Valor / Hangar Z booth. Joining us today are Deputy Pilot Mike Sill and Deputy Pilot Johnny Reyes from the Fresno County Sheriff’s Office Air Support Unit.Sill is this year’s recipient of the prestigious Robert L. Cormier Memorial Award, recognizing outstanding achievement in the advancement of aircraft in public service. A charter member of the Fresno County Air Support Unit, Sill recently retired after 25 years of flying—a career defined by dedication, skill, and humility. He often describes himself as “blessed, lucky, and fortunate,” but his success is a direct result of years of hard work and flying challenging, high-risk missions across some of California’s most unforgiving terrain—from just 337 feet at the valley floor to 14,000-foot peaks in the Sierra Nevada.In this conversation, Sill and Reyes share incredible insights from their careers, discussing the power of mentorship, the value of developing personnel from within, the importance of experienced pilots in shaping a new aviation unit, and the critical role of an exceptional maintenance program. They also recount some remarkable high-altitude, life-saving rescues that truly highlight the skill and heart behind their unit’s work.Hangar Z Podcast subscriber numbers have been climbing rapidly and we appreciate your support. If you have not yet subscribed on your favorite podcast platform and on the Vertical HeliCASTS YouTube page, please take a second and do that. That small action makes a big difference for the podcast.Enjoy these episodes from APSCON 2025.Thank you to our sponsors CNC Technologies, Metro Aviation and Spectrolab, Inc.

Welcome to The Hangar Z Podcast, brought to you by Vertical HeliCASTS, in partnership with Vertical Valor magazine.Listen closely for your chance to win awesome prizes from Heli Life! Throughout 2025, every episode of The Hangar Z Podcast will reveal a secret word. Once you catch it, head to contests.verticalhelicasts.com to enter!In this special episode, we recorded from the floor of APSCON 2025 in Phoenix, Arizona, at the Vertical Valor / Hangar Z booth. Joining us today are Deputy Pilot Mike Sill and Deputy Pilot Johnny Reyes from the Fresno County Sheriff’s Office Air Support Unit.Sill is this year’s recipient of the prestigious Robert L. Cormier Memorial Award, recognizing outstanding achievement in the advancement of aircraft in public service. A charter member of the Fresno County Air Support Unit, Sill recently retired after 25 years of flying—a career defined by dedication, skill, and humility. He often describes himself as “blessed, lucky, and fortunate,” but his success is a direct result of years of hard work and flying challenging, high-risk missions across some of California’s most unforgiving terrain—from just 337 feet at the valley floor to 14,000-foot peaks in the Sierra Nevada.In this conversation, Sill and Reyes share incredible insights from their careers, discussing the power of mentorship, the value of developing personnel from within, the importance of experienced pilots in shaping a new aviation unit, and the critical role of an exceptional maintenance program. They also recount some remarkable high-altitude, life-saving rescues that truly highlight the skill and heart behind their unit’s work.Hangar Z Podcast subscriber numbers have been climbing rapidly and we appreciate your support. If you have not yet subscribed on your favorite podcast platform and on the Vertical HeliCASTS YouTube page, please take a second and do that. That small action makes a big difference for the podcast.Enjoy these episodes from APSCON 2025.Thank you to our sponsors Night Flight Concepts, Spectrolab, Inc and Trakka Systems.

Welcome to The Hangar Z Podcast, brought to you by Vertical HeliCASTS, in partnership with Vertical Valor Magazine.Listen closely for your chance to win awesome prizes from Heli Life! Throughout 2025, every episode of The Hangar Z Podcast will reveal a secret word. Once you catch it, head to contests.verticalhelicasts.com/ to enter!In this episode, hosts Jon Gray and Jack Schonely speak with the owner and CEO of Quantum Helicopters, Terry Blakemore.Terry’s story of how he ended up owning Quantum Helicopters in Chandler, Arizona, is unique—starting with a fixed-wing flight at age nine. That flight with his dad resulted in a focus on aviation and the goal of flying fighter jets. Terry’s hard work paid off with an appointment to the United States Air Force Academy and eventually flying F-16s.Terry tells us about his interest in helicopters that lead to him taking lessons at, you guessed it, Quantum Helicopters. His aviation and business experience led to eventually owning the business.We discuss flying an F-16, risk management, leadership, flight instruction, and the important safety culture while training students.Don’t forget to like and subscribe to The Hangar Z Podcast. We also appreciate you taking a minute to write a review. These little things make a big difference for us to bring you a quality podcast with incredible guests.Thank you to our sponsors Dallas Avionics, CNC Technologies and Robinson Helicopter.

Welcome to The Hangar Z Podcast, brought to you by Vertical HeliCASTS, in partnership with Vertical Valor Magazine.Listen closely for your chance to win awesome prizes from Heli Life! Throughout 2025, every episode of The Hangar Z Podcast will reveal a secret word. Once you catch it, head to contests.verticalhelicasts.com/ to enter!In this episode, hosts Jon Gray and Jack Schonely speak with the owner and CEO of Quantum Helicopters, Terry Blakemore.Terry’s story of how he ended up owning Quantum Helicopters in Chandler, Arizona, is unique—starting with a fixed-wing flight at age nine. That flight with his dad resulted in a focus on aviation and the goal of flying fighter jets. Terry’s hard work paid off with an appointment to the United States Air Force Academy and eventually flying F-16s.Terry tells us about his interest in helicopters that lead to him taking lessons at, you guessed it, Quantum Helicopters. His aviation and business experience led to eventually owning the business.We discuss flying an F-16, risk management, leadership, flight instruction, and the important safety culture while training students.Don’t forget to like and subscribe to The Hangar Z Podcast. We also appreciate you taking a minute to write a review. These little things make a big difference for us to bring you a quality podcast with incredible guests.Thank you to our sponsors SHOTOVER, Summit Aviation and Spectrolab.

Welcome to The Hangar Z Podcast, brought to you by Vertical HeliCASTS, in partnership with Vertical Valor Magazine.Listen closely for your chance to win awesome prizes from Heli Life! Throughout 2025, every episode of The Hangar Z Podcast will reveal a secret word. Once you catch it, head to contests.verticalhelicasts.com/ to enter!In this episode, hosts Jon Gray and Jack Schonely speak with the owner and CEO of Quantum Helicopters, Terry Blakemore.Terry’s story of how he ended up owning Quantum Helicopters in Chandler, Arizona, is unique—starting with a fixed-wing flight at age nine. That flight with his dad resulted in a focus on aviation and the goal of flying fighter jets. Terry’s hard work paid off with an appointment to the United States Air Force Academy and eventually flying F-16s.Terry tells us about his interest in helicopters that lead to him taking lessons at, you guessed it, Quantum Helicopters. His aviation and business experience led to eventually owning the business.We discuss flying an F-16, risk management, leadership, flight instruction, and the important safety culture while training students.Don’t forget to like and subscribe to The Hangar Z Podcast. We also appreciate you taking a minute to write a review. These little things make a big difference for us to bring you a quality podcast with incredible guests.Thank you to our sponsors Dallas Avionics, CNC Technologies and Robinson Helicopter.

Welcome to the Hangar Z Podcast, brought to you by Vertical HeliCASTS, in partnership with Vertical Valor Magazine.Listen closely for your chance to win awesome prizes from Heli Life! Throughout 2025, every episode of The Hangar Z Podcast will reveal a secret word. Once you catch it, head to contests.verticalhelicasts.com to enter!In this three-episode series, we’re honored to sit down with retired Los Angeles Police Department SWAT veteran Sgt Chuck Buttitta. Over the course of four decades, Chuck was a true “customer” of law enforcement aviation units—working alongside aircrews in countless ways. His career path spanned patrol, narcotics, SWAT operator, sniper, SWAT supervisor, and even search-and-rescue in retirement.Chuck’s distinguished service is marked by numerous accolades, including the Medal of Valor, two Police Stars, the Police Commission Unit Citation, the Police Meritorious Unit Citation, two Bureau Commendations, more than 150 minor commendations, the 2009 Top Cop Award, and in retirement, the Ventura County Citizen Medal of Merit for a rescue.Chuck joins us to share the customer’s perspective on aviation support—particularly during SWAT and K9 operations. It’s a critical conversation because aviation units exist to serve and protect those on the ground: Our officers, deputies, troopers, agents, and ultimately, the communities we all safeguard.In episode three, we shift to a topic deeply important to both Chuck and this podcast—remembering our fallen officers. Chuck reflects on how remembrance must go beyond words and into action. One powerful example is the Police Unity Tour, which both Chuck and Jack participated in many times. We’ll talk about how this life-changing experience honors those we’ve lost, how you can get involved, and why carrying their memory forward is one of the most meaningful things we can do. We hope you enjoy this conversation as much as we did.Thank you again to all our sponsors and followers. We appreciate you very much. Don’t forget to like, share, subscribe, and leave us a review.Thank you to our sponsors Night Flight Concepts, Precision Aviation Group and Trakka Systems .

Welcome to the Hangar Z Podcast, brought to you by Vertical HeliCASTS, in partnership with Vertical Valor Magazine.Listen closely for your chance to win awesome prizes from Heli Life! Throughout 2025, every episode of The Hangar Z Podcast will reveal a secret word. Once you catch it, head to contests.verticalhelicasts.com to enter!In this three-episode series, we’re honored to sit down with retired Los Angeles Police Department SWAT veteran Sgt Chuck Buttitta. Over the course of four decades, Chuck was a true “customer” of law enforcement aviation units—working alongside aircrews in countless ways. His career path spanned patrol, narcotics, SWAT operator, sniper, SWAT supervisor, and even search-and-rescue in retirement.Chuck’s distinguished service is marked by numerous accolades, including the Medal of Valor, two Police Stars, the Police Commission Unit Citation, the Police Meritorious Unit Citation, two Bureau Commendations, more than 150 minor commendations, the 2009 Top Cop Award, and in retirement, the Ventura County Citizen Medal of Merit for a rescue.Chuck joins us to share the customer’s perspective on aviation support—particularly during SWAT and K9 operations. It’s a critical conversation because aviation units exist to serve and protect those on the ground: Our officers, deputies, troopers, agents, and ultimately, the communities we all safeguard.In episode three, we shift to a topic deeply important to both Chuck and this podcast—remembering our fallen officers. Chuck reflects on how remembrance must go beyond words and into action. One powerful example is the Police Unity Tour, which both Chuck and Jack participated in many times. We’ll talk about how this life-changing experience honors those we’ve lost, how you can get involved, and why carrying their memory forward is one of the most meaningful things we can do. We hope you enjoy this conversation as much as we did.Thank you again to all our sponsors and followers. We appreciate you very much. Don’t forget to like, share, subscribe, and leave us a review.Thank you to our sponsors Airbus, Canyon AeroConnect and Metro Aviation.

Welcome to the Hangar Z Podcast, brought to you by Vertical HeliCASTS, in partnership with Vertical Valor Magazine.Listen closely for your chance to win awesome prizes from Heli Life! Throughout 2025, every episode of The Hangar Z Podcast will reveal a secret word. Once you catch it, head to contests.verticalhelicasts.com to enter!In this three-episode series, we’re honored to sit down with retired Los Angeles Police Department SWAT veteran Sgt Chuck Buttitta. Over the course of four decades, Chuck was a true “customer” of law enforcement aviation units—working alongside aircrews in countless ways. His career path spanned patrol, narcotics, SWAT operator, sniper, SWAT supervisor, and even search-and-rescue in retirement.Chuck’s distinguished service is marked by numerous accolades, including the Medal of Valor, two Police Stars, the Police Commission Unit Citation, the Police Meritorious Unit Citation, two Bureau Commendations, more than 150 minor commendations, the 2009 Top Cop Award, and in retirement, the Ventura County Citizen Medal of Merit for a rescue.Chuck joins us to share the customer’s perspective on aviation support—particularly during SWAT and K9 operations. It’s a critical conversation because aviation units exist to serve and protect those on the ground: Our officers, deputies, troopers, agents, and ultimately, the communities we all safeguard.In episode three, we shift to a topic deeply important to both Chuck and this podcast—remembering our fallen officers. Chuck reflects on how remembrance must go beyond words and into action. One powerful example is the Police Unity Tour, which both Chuck and Jack participated in many times. We’ll talk about how this life-changing experience honors those we’ve lost, how you can get involved, and why carrying their memory forward is one of the most meaningful things we can do. We hope you enjoy this conversation as much as we did.Thank you again to all our sponsors and followers. We appreciate you very much. Don’t forget to like, share, subscribe, and leave us a review.Thank you to our sponsors Airbus, Canyon AeroConnect and Metro Aviation.

Welcome to The Hangar Z Podcast, brought to you by Vertical HeliCASTS, in partnership with Vertical Valor magazine.Listen closely for your chance to win awesome prizes from Heli Life! Throughout 2025, every episode of The Hangar Z Podcast will reveal a secret word. Once you catch it, head to contests.verticalhelicasts.com to enter!In this episode, all of us at Vertical Valor Magazine and The Hangar Z Podcast congratulate the El Dorado County Sheriff’s Office Aviation Unit on receiving the Blades of Valor award for Service, Courage, and Flight. From a meeting with the sheriff in 2021 to launching a fully operational unit just three years later, their journey has been one of vision, dedication, and collaboration.The team carefully selected the right people and the right airframe for their mission, drawing valuable insight from neighboring aviation units, the Airborne Public Safety Association, and the Seminole County Sheriff’s Office in Florida. The result: 22 rescues in their very first year of operation.Representing the unit are its three full-time members—Sergeant Jesse Decanay, Pilot Joe Brown, and TFO/Mechanic Patrick Becker. Together, we discuss the challenges of building a law enforcement aviation program from the ground up, choosing the right airframe and personnel, and establishing a strong safety culture from day one.Thank you to all our followers and our sponsors. Don’t forget to like and subscribe to The Hangar Z Podcast.Thank you to our sponsors Precision Aviation Group, SHOTOVER and Summit Aviation.