NVG for all night helo ops, says FAA
The FAA’s David Downey recommends that all night helicopter operations be flown by pilots wearing night-vision goggles (NVGs).

The FAA’s David Downey recommends that all night helicopter operations be flown by pilots wearing night-vision goggles (NVGs). “NVGs should be the norm, not the exception,” said Downey, manager of the FAA’s rotorcraft directorate in Fort Worth, Texas. Thus far, 500 helicopters have been modified for NVG operations, including pilot equipment and internal lighting, and the trend continues to grow, he said.

One problem with NVG installations is that while there is an FAA technical standard order for the goggles, no company has received TSO approval. Current NVG approvals are done via the supplemental type certificate (STC) process, which approves each installation and its goggles, but TSO approval would make installations faster as well as easier to export from the U.S.