Van Horn Aviation | Composite Rotor Blades

Spotlight on Salmon River Helicopters

Based in Riggins, Idaho, aerial operator Salmon River Helicopters takes pride in its safety record of no aviation accidents since Cindy and Guy Carlson started business in 1993.

The woman-owned and family-operated business offers a variety of services including helicopter flight instruction and a long line school. It operates two UH-1F Huey helicopters with upgraded 703 engines for transporting external loads including ski lift, powerline and cell tower construction; logging, firefighting, straw mulching and other services. The Hueys even occasionally recover airplanes and snowmobiles from isolated mountainous areas. Salmon River also uses a R44 Raven II for sightseeing, aerial photography, cherry drying and predator control. As noted on the company’s website (srhelicopters.com) “If you think it up and it’s legal, we’ll do it.”

SIDEBAR: A Van Horn Repair Success Story

Salmon River purchased its first set of VHA UH-1 Huey tail rotor blades in 2010. Contract Administrator Niki Schacher and pilot Cody Carlson explained how one of their Huey tail rotor blades was damaged when an engine diffuser cap fell off the helicopter and struck the tail rotor blade, severely denting the abrasion strip and delaminating several layers of carbon fiber near the tip (see photo). With very few hours logged on the blade, they were not ready to scrap the seemingly unrepairable blade. So they sent it back to VHA. Our engineers and composite experts at Van Horn Repair figured out how to fix the damage and return the blade to service. Our paint department added the finishing touches and the blade is now back in the air. A second blade had minor damage to the leading edge and was sent in for repair as a precautionary measure to ensure the carbon fiber was not exposed to possible moisture. It also was successfully repaired and currently flying.

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AD Compliance Reminder for Certain 206L MRB Operators

By Kim VHA • April 25, 2025

For 206L LongRanger operators flying P/N 20633000-101 serial numbers A007-A009 or A012-A104, we would like to remind you that these blades are subject to AD 2022-22-08, which requires recurring tap inspections every 400 flight hours or 2,400 engine starts, whichever comes first. You can learn more about the tap test requirements and procedure in our video . These blades are likely to develop a delamination in the area of the weight pocket on the lower surface of the blade. The AD further requires removing the blades from service if the delamination reaches 6 inches in length. However, extensive company testing indicates that all blades will likely achieve their full retirement life before that occurs. So long as the delamination is monitored and does not exceed the permitted length, the blades are entirely safe to fly with no adverse effects on aircraft behavior or performance. Operators are required to report their findings at every inspection interval to VHA for tracking using the form on the last page of Service Bulletin 33000-4 . Completed forms should be emailed to info@vanhornaviation.com . Providing this data helps to ensure all operators of these blades remain safe. All of the identified blades are likely to have delaminations, so if none are detected please contact us for assistance. In addition, this AD is considered an interim action and once sufficient data is gathered it may be updated to reduce the required frequency of inspection. Refer to AD 2022-22-08 and SB 33000-4 for further information.