Cover Photo by Mark Bennett/HAI

After a stint in the US Army, Michael Tragarz made a 44-year career of aviation, eventually retiring from American Airlines as a captain. In 2000, while still flying commercially, he refurbished his first Hiller helicopter. Tragarz is now not just the proud owner of seven of those machines—including this, the only flying UH-12-E4/5 in the world—he’s also CEO of Hiller Aviation Group, Inc.

Author

  • Mark Bennett

    Mark Bennett worked for McDonnell Douglas Helicopter/Boeing for a decade, then in 1999 cofounded an aerospace-only marketing agency. With nearly 30 years of photography and design experience serving the aerospace and defense industries, he founded AeroMark Images to shoot and write for both industry and media.

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Mark Bennett

Mark Bennett

Mark Bennett worked for McDonnell Douglas Helicopter/Boeing for a decade, then in 1999 cofounded an aerospace-only marketing agency. With nearly 30 years of photography and design experience serving the aerospace and defense industries, he founded AeroMark Images to shoot and write for both industry and media.