Meet HeliNY’s senior mechanic, Jessica Sadelski! Jessica is the only female mechanic out of 12 others that currently work at HeliNY and loves it. Specifically, she is THE engine person, in charge of maintaining the functioning of each helicopter’s engine. So, you thought your pilot was in charge of your life up in the air, but really, it’s Jessica. She gave us the inside scoop on her experience here.
Q: What’s the coolest part about your job?
A: Being able to work on helicopters. The engine has a lot of detail and I really enjoy it. I like working on smaller parts, figuring out what the problems are and then fixing them.
Q: What’s the most amazing thing you’ve experienced while working with HeliNY?
A: There’s something new every day. I love my job and I come to work every single day looking forward to anything we have to do. I’m always looking for something we’ve never done before. I love learning new things and I’m not afraid to try something I’ve never done before. There are a lot of scheduled and unscheduled stuff we have to stay on top of.
Q: How did you get into the industry?
A: I’ve loved flying since I was a kid. I loved airplanes and I actually wanted to work on spaceships one day. Ever since I was a little kid I just really loved aviation. I was never really able to get into the whole flying part, I’m more of a hands on person. When I was younger I worked a lot with my dad who was also a mechanic. And I just always really enjoyed it more than doing other things.
Q: Did your dad inspire you to be a mechanic?
A: Oh yeah. When I told him I wanted to work with helicopters, he thought it was awesome. He wanted to do it as well.
Q: Is it difficult to be a woman in this industry?
A: Somewhat. There is a small group of women in this industry that are willing to do what I do, but I do think the field is growing. It’s a really rewarding job, and I honestly think women could be better at it than men because women are more detail oriented.
Q: How is it being the only female mechanic at HeliNY?
A: It’s empowering. I’ve been here for about 4 years, I’m the senior mechanic, and I think a lot of the younger guys look up to me. I’m always trying to help them learn as much as they can and get all the experience possible.
Q: Do you have any advice for prospective airline mechanics?
A: Definitely trust your gut. If you think that there’s a problem, trust your gut and look into it. Use all your tools available. Sometimes even if something doesn’t seem big, it can end up being pretty important.
Q: What’s the biggest pressure at your job?
A: Time. Once we start working on something we need to try and get it up as soon as possible and as safe as possible.
Liked this blog? Stay tuned in the coming months as we feature more members of the HeliNY team.
Interested in an NYC helicopter tour? View our tours here.
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