Chief Pilot

Helicopter Jobs · North Kingstown, RI · 1 mo ago

Full-time

Operational Control Support & Regulatory Compliance
Support the Director of Operations' exercise of operational control under 135.77 by ensuring pilots and flight operations conform to HSUSA's FAA-authorized OpSpecs, FAA-approved manuals, deviations, and exemptions.
Serve as the company's principal pilot-standards authority across all bases and mission types.
Work directly with the Director of Operations to maintain the flight-operations content of the training manual and pilot-facing SOPs in current, compliant condition, and ensure pilots can access and understand applicable requirements.
Serve as a primary company point of contact to the Principal Operations Inspector (POI) on pilot qualification, training, and checking matters.
Any additional duties assigned by the Director of Operations.

Work alongside the Director of Operations to establish, publish, and enforce standardized procedures, callouts, and mission profiles across all bases, mission types, and crews.
Draft, review, and refine SOPs and mission-specific procedures (offshore IFR/HEDA, hoist/HEC, NVG, Part 133 external load, HAA, RRS), maintaining alignment with the company manuals.
Ensure procedures are clear, enforceable, and practically usable by line pilots.

Own and continuously improve the pilot training program: initial, transition, upgrade, differences, and recurrent training.
Design and oversee scenario-based training for IFR/offshore, NVG, hoist/HEC, external load, and HAA operations.
Work with HSUSA’s Director of Training to ensure required testing and checking is scheduled and completed.
Identify training gaps from HFDM trends, safety reports, and check results, and build targeted recurrent training.
Carefully coordinate outsourced/simulator training (e.g., Part 142 providers) and ensure alignment with company needs.

Personally conduct pilot training, testing, and checking on the AW169 as an approved check pilot and flight instructor, within the limits of FAA approvals and independence requirements.
Mentor, standardize, and calibrate other company check pilots and instructors to ensure consistent, repeatable standards.
Maintain accurate crewmember training and qualification records in accordance with 135.63.

Build and sustain a proactive, just safety culture in which the safety of the operation is always the first priority and crews are trusted, supported, and free to raise concerns without fear of reprisal.
Reinforce anti-pressure, go/no-go decision-making and crew resource management (CRM) across all mission types.
Work closely with the Safety Manager and the SMS, contributing to hazard identification, risk assessment, event review, and root-cause analysis.

With the DO to recruit, hire, onboard, and retain qualified pilots to meet operational and customer demand.
Lead and develop the pilot workforce.
Provide clear performance expectations and feedback, and deliver corrective standardization when required.

Maintain personal line currency and mission qualification on the AW169 sufficient to lead standardization from the front lines and to exercise check pilot and instructor privileges.
Fly line and mission sorties as operationally appropriate, without compromising management, training, and oversight responsibilities.
Will be required to fly a minimum of 6 shifts a month (Training/Line/Ground Training).

Work with the Director of Operations to maintain assigned Operations Manuals and mission manuals in current condition and accessible to pilots, coordinating changes with the DO and POI.
Ensure flight publications and pilot-facing references are received on time, distributed to the bases, and carried in each aircraft as required.

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