Jen Boyer

Jen Boyer attributes her helicopter passion to the 1980s television show, “Airwolf.” The basis of the program, a suped-up Bell 222, inspired her to follow her dream of vertical flight, which has lead to more than decade in the helicopter industry, so far.

Jen graduated from the University of Oregon, in Eugene, Oregon, with a degree in journalism and was working as a newspaper reporter in the early 1990s when she took her first demo flight in a helicopter. She has since gained her commercial, instrument, flight instructor and instrument instructor ratings in helicopters and logged more than 1,500 hours instructing and flying photo flights and tours throughout the western U. S.

A Seattle native, Jen learned to fly at Classic Helicopter Corporation in her hometown. She later left Washington to complete her training at Helicopter Adventures Inc. in California, where she accepted a position as marketing manager. After receiving her ratings, she worked as a pilot in California and Nevada flying the R22 before taking a position at Robinson Helicopter Company, where she marketed and sited heliports, while also managing the company’s public relations and advertising design. While at Robinson, Jen played a significant role in advocating heliports: she helped develop the first heliport designed by a helicopter manufacturer; joining forces with PHPA she led an effort to save the LAX public heliport; and, working with fellow HAI Heliport Committee members, she was instrumental in lobbying for a change in California state law that simplified the heliport approval process in the state.

Throughout her career Jen has continued to write for helicopter publications around the world, covering a wide range of topics and issues. On assignment, she has flown using NVG, assisted a flight nurse in intubating a critical patient on an EMS flight, hunted illegal aliens along the Mexican border, chased tornados in a helicopter, was party to pilot union contract discussions, and landed on an offshore oil rig in California. She is also a photographer, shooting the images which accompany her stories.

In September 2004, Jen took a job as media relations manager for Horizon Air, the regional sister carrier to Alaska Airlines. She remains involved in helicopter aviation as a flight instructor and volunteers her time with Seattle’s Museum of Flight, the Aviation High School at Boeing field, and the Whirly-Girls, a non-profit, educational and charitable organization dedicated to advancing women in helicopter aviation.

Jen says she has an insatiable wanderlust. Each year she tries to find time to get to Southeastern Utah and Montana, her favorite places to explore. Currently, she lives in Seattle with her husband, two Chihuahuas, and three cats. She and her husband are expecting a daughter in September 2007.