Thierry Dubois is a freelance writer specializing in helicopters, business aviation and aerospace technology. He earned a degree in fluid dynamics from an engineering school in Toulouse, France in the mid-1990s. At an unexpected crossroads, he found his first job in journalism. In 1997, he started working for French aerospace weekly Air &amp; Cosmos in Paris. This lasted until 2000, when he moved south to Lyons. He then became a freelancer, working for various aerospace publications and has been part of the AIN team since late 2000. In addition to writing about business aviation, Thierry shares responsibility for the rotorcraft section. He also is a regular on-site writer for AIN’s daily editions at international airshows such as the Paris, Farnborough, Dubai and Singapore shows, as well as at EBACE in Geneva.
In 2007, he won the Honeywell award for “Best systems or technology submission” at the Aerospace journalist of the year awards. In 2013, he won an Aerospace Media Award for the "Best Safety, Training &amp; Simulation Submission."
In other activities, Thierry moderates international conferences on aviation technology topics. Thierry is married and has three children, who seem to begin enjoying the mountains–as their parents do.

Writer

Thierry Dubois

At Helitech 2011, Blue Sky Network (BSN) exhibited a renewed line of tracking devices that can help flight dispatchers to know, in real-time, where their fleet’s helicopters are. Through the SkyRouter web portal, they can receive regular updates on the aircraft’s altitude, heading and location, explained hardware engineer Steve Larson.
BSN uses both GSM cellphone and Iridium satellite coverage. As an option, customers can choose a dual mode, where the system is set on the less-expensive GSM network by default. It turns to satellite only when GSM is not available.
One interesting feature of the Skyrouter is geo-fencing. “If you want to prevent your pilots from flying over Cuba, for example, you simply draw a line around Cuba on Skyrouter’s map,” Larson told AIN. The flight dispatcher then receives an alert if the aircraft flies through the “geo-fence.”
The usual two-way text messaging capability is standard, with an option for a touchscreen that enables plain typing. Otherwise, the messages sent from the helicopter are pre-programmed. BSN’s products can be retrofitted to any helicopter. “We only need electric power and a location for an antenna,” Larson said.&nbsp;

Helitech 2011: Blue Sky Network Offers Helo Tracking Solutions

At Helitech 2011, Blue Sky Network (BSN) exhibited a renewed line of tracking devices that can help flight dispatchers to know, in real-time

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