WNYW-FOX5 is proud to announce the addition of the most powerful and fastest news helicopter in the New York market. The first of its kind, SKYFOX is an American Eurocopter ASTAR B2 and makes FOX5 the leader in airborne technology.
“The innovative multi-format design of this helicopter and new HD capability from the Cineflex camera system will serve as a vital bridge that will allow us to provide improved service to our standard definition viewers while offering unequaled quality for those with HD receivers,” said Lew Leone, vice president and general manager of WNYW-FOX5.
“We’re proud that FOX5 came to Helinet for their aerial news gathering needs,” said CEO of Helinet Aviation, David Calvert-Jones. “We have provided FOX5 with the best aircraft and high definition camera system on the market, assuring that FOX5 stays ahead of the curve and at the forefront of aerial journalism.”
SKYFOX is totally equipped with state-of-the-art technology and high-definition capabilities, including the Cineflex HiDef HD camera system and multiple band microwave abilities. The advanced electronics systems in place in SKYFOX allow multifunctional HD capabilities that are not available in any other aircraft; resulting in increased detail up to three times that of standard broadcast resolution and increased news coverage. SKYFOX utilizes the same HD technology as the LAPD, which provides FOX5 with the ability to get closer to a story than any of its competitors. The SKYFOX helicopter is provided by Helinet Aviation Services and its state of the art design is custom tailored by Geneva Aviation, Helinet’s aviation electronics branch.
“Being able to capture and broadcast live, high definition images from the air is the most significant development in airborne news gathering in many years,” said FOX5’s airborne reporter, Kai Simonsen. “SKYFOX HD is the most flexible helicopter I have ever flown in. Because of its state of the art design, I have access to numerous video, audio, and communication sources in a configuration that I can tailor to my own needs by the flip of a switch.”
The Helinet/Cineflex HiDEF camera system, which is built around the Sony HDC-F950 camera, is the lightest, most compact fully digital camera platform in the world. With its light weight, at just 67 pounds, the Cineflex HiDEF platform is significantly lighter and more compact than existing film-based systems and more powerful in its pan, tilt and zoom capabilities. The Cineflex HiDef camera system provides up to three times more detail than standard broadcast resolution and has enhanced zoom capabilities allowing, for example, a license plate to be read from thousands of feet away.
This is the same camera system that was used in the critically acclaimed film Domino and the soon to be released Miami Vice.
WNYW-FOX5 is one of two FOX owned-and-operated stations in the nation’s No. 1 TV market – New York City – and is also broadcast via DIRECTV on JetBlue Airways. FOX Television Stations, Inc. is one of the nation’s largest owned-and-operated network broadcast groups, and consists of 35 stations in 26 markets covering nearly 45% of U.S. television homes.
About Helinet Aviation Services
Helinet Aviation Services is an international provider of aviation services to a diversity of markets. The company is recognized as one of the nation’s top electronic news gathering (ENG) aerial solutions providers. In addition, Helinet regularly flies heads of state, celebrities and Fortune 500 executives, and transports patients in need of specialized care and life-saving organs to hospitals. Another facet of Helinet’s business model is its entertainment division, Helinet Cinema Solutions, a turnkey provider for the most challenging aerial shots and stunts for Hollywood’s top films and commercials.
