Film & Production Aerials

Aerial Services › Film & Production Aerials

Door-off cinematography over the Adirondacks

Some shots only come from a helicopter: the slow reveal along a ridgeline, the hover that holds while the actor walks the dock, the long tracking move down Lake George at the speed of a boat. The Robinson R44 Raven II is a steady piston platform for exactly that kind of work. The doors come off, your camera operator rides with intercom and a headset, and the pilot flies the move you have storyboarded.

We carry no fixed camera mount. Your operator shoots handheld or with the gyro-stabilized gimbal your production supplies, which keeps the camera package and the footage entirely in your crew's hands and avoids the mount rental that drives up the cost of larger aerial units.

The New York film tax credit

Productions shooting upstate are often working inside the New York State film tax credit program. Flying with a locally based aircraft keeps the aerial unit inside the production's New York spend rather than importing a helicopter and crew from out of state. Confirm your production's eligibility and the treatment of aerial costs with your production accountant; we supply the invoice and the certificate of insurance.

What we bring to set

• Robinson R44 Raven II, doors removable, up to 3 seats for the operator, a director or a second camera
• Cruise around 110 knots for tracking shots, with the ability to slow to a walking pace or hold a hover for a static frame
• About 2.5 hours of endurance with crew and reserve, enough for a full location block without refueling
• Intercom and headsets so the director can call the move from the back seat
• $1,000,000 aviation liability, $100,000 per passenger, certificate of insurance on request for your production's paperwork
• A safety program based on 14 CFR Part 5 SMS principles, with a resident CFII pilot who flies every job and briefs the move before engine start

Scheduling and rates

Aerial days start at $750 per Hobbs hour with a 30-minute minimum; ferry time from Fort Ann to the location bills at the same rate. Send the location, the shot list and the camera package you are bringing and you will have a project quote within 24 hours. For a confirmed order we are airborne within 48 hours, daylight VMC.

Where we fly

Lake George, the High Peaks, the Champlain Valley, the Capital Region and southern Vermont, all within easy reach of Harris Airport in Fort Ann. We also fly scenic plates and establishing shots without a crew on board, using a camera operator from your unit in the front seat.