On any given day the airspace in Bend, Oregon, is buzzing with activity. Training Flights, aircraft testing, medical operations, corporate commuting and more, help make the Bend Municipal Airport the third busiest airport in the state.
With so much action, it may not be surprising to hear about brand new construction taking place; however, for local pilot training school Leading Edge Flight Academy, this construction marks years of hard work, dedication and commitment to excellence in the flight training world.
“With the rapid growth of fixed-wing and helicopter schools throughout the nation, we foresaw the need for the expansion of our school. With the support of the FAA, City of Bend, and the State of Oregon, we have been able to attain our goal, and build a dedicated helicopter operations facility. Our new facility will ensure a safe training environment for our pilots, students, and commercial operations. We are truly excited for our future,” said Brad Fraley, CEO, Leading Edge
The interior of the building consists of three offices, one conference room, seven ground training spaces, and a helicopter flight training device. The landing pad has capacity for 21 helicopters.
One of the main highlights of the new facility is the separation of flight operations at the airport, leaving pilots feeling safer with more room to complete their training.
“Operating out of the new heliport facility has been a huge upgrade to my training. Being surrounded by my peers in a helicopter specific environment that is filled with helpful material and teaching aids has made my training feel so much more specialized. I also feel like the heliport has provided a much safer separation between airplanes and helicopters at the airport,” said an unnamed helicopter student from Leading Edge Flight Academy.
Flight instructors are also happy to gather additional industry specific knowledge because of the new helicopter landing pad.
“Flying out of the heliport has provided our students and instructors, very early on in their career, the ‘real world’ environment that they will be exposed to in the future. Since Leading Edge Aviation also runs its charter department out of the same facility, pilots have exposure to more advanced helicopters as well as high time pilots that are happy to share their experience and wisdom,” said Chris Jordan, director of operations.
This press release was prepared and distributed by Leading Edge Flight Academy.
