Kathy Kane, Katy Casey, Brandon Porter, and Laurie Pitman by the Bell in San Jose
Golden Gate Helicopters is proud of the professionals who make up our company. Among our pilots, we share over 12,000 hours of flight experience, and most of our employees have been with us for years, unusual for a small helicopter business like ours. GGH supplies health insurance for its employees, and we foster and encourage personal and professional growth at GGH through education and experience. We believe that the success of our company rests in the amazing collective experience and dedication of our team of pilots, planners, dispatch, management, and maintenance staff.
At our dispatch desk on weekdays, you'll speak with Brandon Porter, and weekends with Attila Balint (GGH Private Pilot 2007). They handle initial inquiries about charter reservations, scheduling, dispatch, billing, student records, and general questions, and will be happy to help you when you call or drop by. If you plan a flight with us, you'll most likely talk with Katy Casey, Director of Client Services (GGH Private Pilot 2008), who handles flight planning and trip details for our charter customers.
Laurie Pitman, CEO
After retiring from the software business (WebLogic) in 1999, Laurie Pitman spent a few years on other interesting projects, but eventually decided to "unretire" in 2005, when she joined Golden Gate Helicopters as a partner. Two years later she acquired sole ownership of the business. Aviation has been a big part of Laurie's life since she began flying fixed-wing aircraft in 1979, although she has enjoyed several other careers since then.
Scott Franges, Director of Maintenance
Scott has more than 25 years of experience in making aircraft run perfectly. As our resident Robinson expert, Scott Franges manages GGH's Robinson Helicopter Certified Service Center, which maintains all of our aircraft as well as other Bay Area rotorwing and fixed-wing aircraft. He holds an A&P (Airframe & Powerplant) license, as well as an IA (Inspection Authorization) license, and is a certified Robinson Helicopter mechanic.
Katy Casey, Director of Client Services
After completing her private rotorcraft rating at GGH in 2008, Katy Casey joined GGH as a weekday dispatcher. In September 2009 she assumed more responsibility as Director of Client Services. If you take advantage of our great concierge services or call to make a flight reservation, you'll probably work with Katy, who alternates between our San Jose and Hayward offices weekdays. Before kids and GGH, Katy worked for many years in customer support and disaster preparedness at Continental Airlines. We are thrilled to have Katy's love of aviation, her consummate professionalism, and her pilot experience as part of our management team.
Attila Balint, Weekend Dispatch
Attila Balint earned his private rotorcraft rating at GGH in 2007. He has worked as our weekend dispatch specialist for several years, in addition to school and working in a family business, and he has taken on increasing responsibility at GGH. He works weekends at our Hayward office.
Brandon Porter, Weekday Dispatch
Brandon is a mechanical whiz, and although he's not a pilot (yet), he's learned how to speak helicopterese very well in his time at GGH. Working out of both San Jose and Hayward, Brandon will most likely be the first GGH person you'll talk to. He assists Katy in flight planning, and also acts as our bookkeeper and keeps the office running smoothly.
Flight staff
Amber Mathrole — Chief Pilot
Amber's dream to fly helicopters began in the late 1990s, when her job as a firefighter in Medicino county often landed her on helicopters as a passenger. With the encouragement and support of her grandmother, she moved to the Bay Area to attend Sierra Academy in 2000, where she trained with Simon Edwards. She has been instructing since 2002, and she has been with Golden Gate Helicopters since September 2004, longer than anyone in the company. She is Chief Pilot, as well as senior flight instructor, our most experienced photo pilot, and designated pilot for all of our charter flights, corporate travel, and entertainment.
John Holloszy — Director of Flight Training
John was already a fixed wing ATP with professional experience as a jet charter pilot and many hours of fixed wing instructing when he began his helicopter training at GGH, which he completed in 2009. As our Director of Flight Training, John is in charge of day-to-day operations in our flight school in Hayward; he administers stage checks and aircraft checkouts, maintains our syllabi to the highest standards, and oversees our flight training department. We are thrilled to have John's extensive flight experience as part of our company's professional expertise, and we're proud to have one of our graduates as a member of our professional pilot team. John is available daily after 4pm and all day Sunday.
Justin Carreiro, CFI
Justin has dreamed of flying since he was a young child. He first took the controls of an aircraft when he was 14, when a family friend gave him a flight lesson in a Cessna 172. Justin began his helicopter training in south Florida the summer of 2008, but soon after he finished his Private Pilot License, he moved to the Bay Area and completed his training at Golden Gate Helicopters. Justin’s training gave him a variety of flight experiences, ranging from hot, humid south Florida, to the high density altitude of South Lake Tahoe, and the complicated airspace of SFO. Now that he is an instructor at GGH, he hopes to pass down his high standards and passion for flight to future Golden Gate Helicopters students, pilots, and graduates.
Paul Harris, CFI
Paul, a UK citizen, earned his Private Pilot License and Instrument Rating in Florida, then returned to the UK where he completed his Commercial and Flight Instructor training. When he came to the US in late 2010, he initially was a student at GGH until he completed his FAA Commercial and CFI. Paul, having piloted helicopters in Europe, Africa, and North America, has flown on more continents than anyone else on staff. Besides his instructing, Paul does flight planning, works as our Flight Coordinator, handling day-of logistics for many charters and photo flights, and also writes the GGH blog.
Walt Vining, CFI/I
Walt, one of our favorite renters at GGH for several years, became a GGH instructor in 2007. Walt completed his training at Sierra Academy in Oakland and was a CFI there when Amber began her training. Most recently, Walt has spent his summers fighting fires as a SkyCrane pilot. We are happy to have Walt's experience on staff.