Skydance Helicopters

Skydance Helicopters is a helicopter operator based in Minden, Nevada, USA. The company is F.A.A. certified and has more than 30 years of aviation experience. It provides high altitude, exploration, seismic, geology, construction, external cargo, aerial survey, heavy lift, firefighting, film and movie flight services.

The company offers external load and heavy lift services. Its UH-60 Blackhawk has a maximum external load of 8,000 pounds. Typical jobs include HVAC rooftop placement, tower construction, precision long line installations and helicopter lifting in high altitude mountain areas. The company says it can accomplish most lifting tasks safely.

The fleet includes the UH-60 Blackhawk, the Lama SA 315B, the AS-350B3 AStar and the MD 500 series. The Lama is used for high altitude and hot operations and precision pole placement. The AStar has a large cabin for people moving, stretchers, cinematography and internal cargo. The MD530 FF handles hot and mountain work and wire pulling, with a maximum external load of 1,500 pounds.

Skydance has worked for the United States Forest Service across the country. Its pilots, mechanics and fleet meet Forest Service standards. The company is in a multi year exclusive use contract in the northwest. It is a certified Class A short haul provider. In 2015 it was named a provider for the Forest Service helicopter short haul program.

Other services include electric utility and power line work, aerial survey, and exploration work such as seismic, drilling and magnetometer surveys. Aerial film and photography includes location scouting and gimbal work. The company also offers wildlife capture, survey and relocation, salvage recovery and consulting. Its news pages mention a portable drilling system called Skydance-Xtreme.

The company says it has been operating helicopters for over 30 years. It maintains its fleet to the highest standards and provides experienced pilots for safe and precise delivery or extraction to job sites. The website shows credential badges for PRISM, ISNetworld and WBENC.

Services

• External load and heavy lift
• Electric utilities and power line work
• Forestry and firefighting
• Wildlife management
• Aerial survey
• Exploration
• Aerial film and photography
• Salvage recovery
• Consulting