Bell 505 Testimonial: Rusty Robinson

I love traveling, and I love experiencing the world and all it has to offer. I guess a 505 lets me see places that very few people dream about.

My name is Rusty Robinson, and I'm an owner and pilot of a Bell 505. I started flying helicopters last October and got my rating earlier this year in February. So I'm a brand-new pilot with under 200 hours, and the 505 has been great for me so far.

I've put almost 100 hours on this machine. I'm a fixed-wing pilot as well. I got my pilot's license when I was 17 years old, and then my IFR rating right after that. I also own a light business jet.

It seems like everywhere we went, we always chartered a helicopter to get into the backcountry and see what we wanted to see. It just made natural sense to acquire a helicopter so we could see the nation and enjoy the parts of the area that were hard to reach.

A lot of people call it a time machine, and I completely agree. To hop off the airplane and into the helicopter, and 15 minutes later be in a location that would take you a day to reach by traveling, is a pretty awesome experience. It's a great way to disconnect and really connect with nature very quickly.

The first time flying in the 505 was pretty astounding. The visibility throughout the aircraft, with almost a 360-degree view, was just amazing. I'm in shock and awe. I've seen a lot of things in the world and been to a lot of places, but it feels almost like the first time.

When you fly over those glaciated peaks and see the different layers of stone and the trees above the tree line, you're constantly gasping. I've done a tour of the American West so far—Colorado, Utah, Montana, and Idaho. This weekend, we're doing Washington and Oregon, and then, of course, all the way up through the panhandle of Alaska.

I've also flown up the coastline of Michigan's Upper Peninsula, over Lake Michigan. It was astounding to see all the different homes, the water, and the old shipwrecks that you could only see from the air. That was another one of my favorite trips.

I have the Garmin 1000 in mine, as all of them do, but I have Synthetic Vision, which I love. You can put the highway and the sky on the display and track where you're going. It really takes the guesswork out of mountain flying, where the horizon is broken and you're trying to keep your attitude centered. It's really easy with Synthetic Vision.

The startup sequence is automated, so you basically hit one button, monitor the gauges, and it's very easy.

I enjoy it. The acquisition price is great compared to a single-engine turbine, but you get so much more than you do with some of the other models. With the electronics, ease of startup, maintenance, and reasonable fuel consumption, along with the tried-and-true rotor and tail rotor systems from the Bell 206, it has dependability and new technology packaged into one. It was pretty incredible and made the decision very easy.

A lot of my use is recreational, but no matter what you're doing in a helicopter—whether you're going to a business meeting or long-lining—it's impossible not to enjoy the view. It is almost like flying a bird.