From the senior leadership team to the customer service representatives, salespeople, maintenance technicians, and everyone in between, a simple but powerful goal unites the staff at Aviation Specialties Unlimited (ASU).
They’re providing one-stop night vision solutions that save lives.
And as an industry pioneer who helped bring military-grade night vision capability to the civil helicopter market more than 25 years ago, no company is in a better position to succeed.
“We believe night vision solutions save lives, and we take that to heart,” said Dr. Joseph Estrera, president of ASU. “We’re doing everything we can in innovation, investment, and at every possible opportunity to make life easier for our customers so that they can focus on life-saving work.”
ASU is one of the world’s leading manufacturers, resellers, and training providers for night vision goggles (NVGs) and comprehensive night vision solutions. Founded in 1995 by former AH-64 Apache pilot Mike Atwood, the company’s expertise is felt in law enforcement, aerial firefighting, and emergency medical services (EMS) helicopter cockpits around the world every day, 24/7.
“The environment that [pilots] work in is aggressively working against them,” said Estrera, who joined ASU in 2013 and became president in 2021, following the retirement of Jim Winkel. “ASU is a company that is working for them — it’s our mission.”
A key reason for ASU’s success is that it’s a one-stop integrator of NVG solutions.
As a manufacturer, ASU is developing purpose-built NVGs that are ideally suited to special mission crews. It also stocks NVGs from other leading manufacturers, completes custom aircraft lighting modifications, provides tailored NVG training and full life cycle NVG maintenance.
“We provide NVG products, services, training, and support from the beginning to the end,” Estrera said. “Our customers can expect that we will be right by their side to ensure they have a safe, compliant, and successful NVG program — we’re going to be with you all the way.”
The relationship between ASU and its clients is not merely transactional — it’s focused on the success of special mission operators over the long term. As their needs evolve, ASU can help them adapt quickly to minimize aircraft on ground (AOG) time.
“We’re doing everything we can in innovation, investment, and at every possible opportunity to make life easier for our customers so that they can focus on life-saving work.”
Dr. Joseph Estrera, president of ASU
If upgrades are required, ASU has a trade-in program so customers can access the latest NVG technology. And in a time when helicopter operators are stretched thin by a shortage of pilots and maintenance personnel, ASU shoulders the burden of NVG training.
“We can accomplish all of your NVG flight training, including initial and refresher training and on to instructor certifications,” said Chad St. Francis, vice president of business development and marketing at ASU. “ASU is also able to provide NVG maintenance training so our customers can maintain their equipment, or have our NVG service center experts maintain that equipment with our cost-effective service agreements.”
As an industry leader for more than 25 years, ASU has an unparalleled combination of expertise, support, and industry partnerships with a focus on the long-term sustainability of NVG programs.
“Our experienced team designs and installs custom aircraft lighting modifications for NVG operations using our certified internal and external lighting solutions,” St. Francis said. “Our engineering team, parts manufacturing, and traveling installers will modify your lighting and get the aircraft certified with minimal downtime. The modification starts with a comprehensive aircraft survey. Our skilled installers and project managers will assist with the survey to better understand the equipment requirements that will get the aircraft back in operation as efficiently as possible.”
ASU also has a team of experienced drafters and engineers with a deep and nuanced understanding of U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and other aviation authority requirements, which translates to greater efficiency during the certification process. And everyone in the ASU service department is approved by major original equipment manufacturers to test equipment.
“Our NVG service center is fully equipped and staffed to service both your calibration equipment and night vision devices. Instead of our customers making a huge investment in standing up a lab with trained personnel, ASU is ready to accomplish your NVG scheduled maintenance within 48 hours,” St. Francis said. “We are committed to saving our customers time, effort, energy, and also cost involved in keeping their NVG assets maintained.”
ASU’s main office and manufacturing facility is in Boise, Idaho, but the company has recently expanded its footprint by adding regional managers in Europe, Asia, and South America to service overseas markets. This “boots on the ground” approach reaches customers worldwide with the industry’s best NVG solutions.
“We’re able to have ASU employees travel easily within our international sales territories — it’s important to support our customers face-to-face [and] discuss their needs and solutions to get them on mission,” St. Francis said.
“Our responsive customer success team supports our customers and territory managers,” added Sarah Pokorney, marketing manager at ASU. “We’ve got real people answering phones, responding to questions, following up, and following through. Delivering an exceptional experience is our priority.”
As the team at ASU looks ahead to opportunities in 2022 and beyond, their core mission remains the same: Using night vision solutions to save lives.
