Welcome to the Vertical MRO Podcast, brought to you by Vertical HeliCASTS, in partnership with Vertical Magazine. This special edition of the Vertical MRO Podcast brings you a fast-paced series of conversations recorded live at the 2025 Irving MRO Conference. Host Jon Gray and Producer David Kreutzkamp sit down with a wide range of voices—from operators and technicians to students, MRO leaders, and innovators—to capture the energy, challenges, and ideas shaping helicopter maintenance today. ...
Welcome to the Vertical MRO Podcast, brought to you by Vertical HeliCASTS, in partnership with Vertical Magazine. In this episode of the Vertical MRO Podcast, hosts Jon Gray and Ronnie Ries sit down with Jamie Wood, the CEO and Founder of the bio-technology platform Autonomic. Jamie is changing the way people think and learn about their brains. Through neuroscience based products and cutting edge technologies, her mission is to elevate human potential by bringing personalized brain health sol...
Welcome to the Vertical MRO Podcast, brought to you by Vertical HeliCASTS, in partnership with Vertical Magazine. In this two-part Vertical MRO Podcast series, hosts Jon Gray and Faith Ortega have an engaging conversation with Dale Neubauer, an airfame and powerplant (A&P) mechanic and CEO of HeliLadder; and Drew Benton Jr., owner of Helicopter Maintenance Solutions. During the conversation, our guests explore their journeys in the helicopter community. They discuss the professional chall...
Welcome to the Vertical MRO Podcast, brought to you by Vertical HeliCASTS, in partnership with Vertical Magazine. In this two-part Vertical MRO Podcast series, hosts Jon Gray and Faith Ortega have an engaging conversation with Dale Neubauer, an airfame and powerplant (A&P) mechanic and CEO of HeliLadder; and Drew Benton Jr., owner of Helicopter Maintenance Solutions. During the conversation, our guests explore their journeys in the helicopter community. They discuss the professional chall...
Welcome to the Vertical MRO Podcast, brought to you by Vertical HeliCASTS, in partnership with Vertical Magazine. The Vertical MRO Podcast recorded this special episode live from the Vertical Valor booth at APSCON, the Airborne Public Safety Association's annual conference in Phoenix, Arizona. Host Jon Gray is joined by guest host Jeff Ratkovic from the Hangar Z Podcast to honor the service of Matt Pagano, maintainer for the Riverside (California) Police Department Air Support Unit. Matt was ...
Welcome to the Vertical MRO Podcast, brought to you by Vertical HeliCASTS, in partnership with Vertical Magazine. In this special recap episode of the Vertical MRO Podcast, hosts Jon Gray and Howie Murray, along with producer David Kreutzkamp, take listeners inside the inaugural Vertical MRO Conference in Kelowna, British Columbia. This first-of-its-kind gathering brought together more than 500 rotorcraft professionals to share knowledge, strengthen connections, and celebrate the passion that...
Welcome to another episode of Vertical MRO Tech Talk presented by Bell. In this special episode of Bell Tech Talk, Mark Dube and Tim Doucet sit down with our host Jon Gray to explore the critical role of health and usage monitoring systems (HUMS) in a growing number of Bell helicopters. From their early development to today’s miniaturized, data-driven technology, HUMS have evolved into a cornerstone of helicopter safety and maintenance. Our conversation highlights how predictive maintenance...
Welcome to the Vertical MRO Podcast, brought to you by Vertical HeliCASTS, in partnership with Vertical Magazine. In this two-part Vertical MRO Podcast series, Jon Gray sits down with Zina Hullings, management analyst at the Ontario (California) Police Department Air Support Unit; and Eric Weidner, who was Ontario PD Air Support commander before retiring in 2016. Zina is recipient of the prestigious Blades of Valor Recognition of Service, Courage, and Flight Award, an honor that celebrates ...
Welcome to the Vertical MRO Podcast, brought to you by Vertical HeliCASTS, in partnership with Vertical Magazine. In this two-part Vertical MRO Podcast series, Jon Gray sits down with Zina Hullings, management analyst at the Ontario (California) Police Department Air Support Unit; and Eric Weidner, who was Ontario PD Air Support commander before retiring in 2016. Zina is recipient of the prestigious Blades of Valor Recognition of Service, Courage, and Flight Award, an honor that celebrates ...
Welcome to the Vertical MRO Podcast, brought to you by Vertical HeliCASTS, in partnership with Vertical Magazine. In this episode of the Vertical MRO Podcast, host Jon Gray speaks with Adam Garcia, a helicopter maintenance professional whose career spans nearly five decades. Adam’s aviation journey began with a life-saving helicopter ride in his youth and carried him through a long and distinguished career in both military and public safety aviation. Adam served with the prestigious 160...
Welcome to the Vertical MRO Podcast, brought to you by Vertical HeliCASTS, in partnership with Vertical Magazine. In this episode of the Vertical MRO Podcast, host Jon Gray speaks with Adam Garcia, a helicopter maintenance professional whose career spans nearly five decades. Adam’s aviation journey began with a life-saving helicopter ride in his youth and carried him through a long and distinguished career in both military and public safety aviation. Adam served with the prestigious 160...
Welcome to the Vertical MRO Podcast, brought to you by Vertical HeliCASTS, in partnership with Vertical Magazine. In this episode, hosts Jon Gray and David Kreutzkamp sit down with MHM Publishing co-founder and co-publisher Linda Reyno, and Leslie Ferry, MHM Publishing’s event director, to give exciting updates on the Vertical MRO Conferences. These events are right around the corner, being held in Kelowna, British Columbia, at the KF Centre for Excellence from Oct. 7 to 9; and in Irving, Tex...
Welcome to the Vertical MRO Podcast, brought to you by Vertical HeliCASTS and in partnership with Vertical Magazine. In this episode of the Vertical MRO Podcast, host Jon Gray and co-host Leslie Ferry sit down with James Simmons, founder of Avolatus and a seasoned aviation professional. We explore his career journey in aviation and gather his insights into the rotorcraft maintenance industry. James shares his experiences from his military service to his current role in workforce d...
Welcome to the Vertical MRO Podcast, brought to you by Vertical HeliCASTS and in partnership with Vertical Magazine. In this episode of the Vertical MRO Podcast, host Jon Gray and co-host Leslie Ferry sit down with James Simmons, founder of Avolatus and a seasoned aviation professional. We explore his career journey in aviation and gather his insights into the rotorcraft maintenance industry. James shares his experiences from his military service to his current role in workforce d...
Welcome to the Vertical MRO Podcast, brought to you by Vertical HeliCASTS and in partnership with Vertical Magazine. In this two part series of the Vertical MRO Podcast, hosts Jon Gray and Ronnie Ries have a discussion with Jon Dillenberg, director at the Thrust Institute of Maintenance. During this conversation, we dive into the critical challenges and exciting opportunities in recruiting and shaping the next generation of talent in the aviation industry. Jon talks about the Thrust Instit...
Welcome to the Vertical MRO Podcast, brought to you by Vertical HeliCASTS and in partnership with Vertical Magazine. In this two part series of the Vertical MRO Podcast, hosts Jon Gray and Ronnie Ries have a discussion with Jon Dillenberg, director at the Thrust Institute of Maintenance. During this conversation, we dive into the critical challenges and exciting opportunities in recruiting and shaping the next generation of talent in the aviation industry. Jon talks about the Thrust Instit...
Welcome to the Vertical MRO Podcast, brought to you by Vertical HeliCASTS and in partnership with Vertical Magazine. In this episode of the Vertical MRO Podcast, host Jon Gray and co-host Howie Murray, sit down with Milton Geltz, managing director of Metro Aviation, to reflect on his remarkable 50-year career in aviation. Milton began his journey in 1976 and has been with Metro since 1983, overseeing daily operations across flight, maintenance, completions, finance, sales, and marketing. ...
Welcome to the Vertical MRO Podcast, brought to you by Vertical HeliCASTS and in partnership with Vertical Magazine. In this special episode of the Vertical MRO Podcast, host Jon Gray is joined by Romain Trapp, Executive Vice President of Customer Support and Services at Airbus Helicopters, for a wide-ranging conversation about leadership, innovation, and the future of rotorcraft support. Romain shares the personal journey that led him through key leadership roles at Airbus Helicopters in Can...
Welcome to the Vertical MRO Podcast, brought to you by Vertical HeliCASTS and in partnership with Vertical Magazine. In this episode of the Vertical MRO Podcast, host Jon Gray sits down with Seth Hardage, owner of Rotorcraft Repair and Manufacturing, to uncover the vital importance of preventative maintenance in aviation. Seth introduces their groundbreaking product, Dragon Skin Xtreme—an advanced rotor blade leading edge protective coating designed to combat erosion and corrosion. Througho...
Welcome to the Vertical MRO Podcast, brought to you by Vertical HeliCASTS and in partnership with Vertical Magazine. Welcome to the Vertical MRO Podcast, brought to you by Vertical HeliCASTS, in partnership with Vertical Magazine. This two-part leadership series episode was recorded on location in Shreveport, Louisiana, at Metro Aviation. Hosts Jon Gray and Leslie Ferry sit down with Metro Aviation’s director of maintenance Shawn Bruton and Emmy Award winner, author, and keynote speaker Clin...