Heli-Dunn

What Heli-Dunn does

Heli-Dunn, operating as T. Scott Dunn Construction, Inc., is a family-owned, private helicopter services company founded in 2004 by Scott Dunn and headquartered at Rogue Valley International Airport in Medford, Oregon. The firm provides contract-based aerial services — most prominently vegetation management near power line right-of-ways, firefighting support, and precision long-line construction lifts — to enterprise utility customers, federal and state land management agencies, and construction firms.

The core technology is an Airbus AS350 "AStar" helicopter fleet modified in-house for external-load visibility and crash survivability, combined with three patented or proprietary aerial tools: the Heli-Feller (US10314241B1) for top-down tree removal with positive pilot control, the Heli-Saw (CA2839040C) for high-throughput side-trimming along rights-of-way, and the Vertical Grapple for logging, storm response, and environmentally sensitive vegetation removal. These tools are operated exclusively by Heli-Dunn and have demonstrated productivity of multiple miles of side-trimming per day and 20–60 tons per hour of grapple extraction.

Commercially, Heli-Dunn sells services on a project-by-project contracted basis through direct enterprise and government sales relationships. Its primary customer vertical is utilities, with documented engagements for PG&E, Tacoma Power, Eugene Water & Electric Board, and Northwestern Energy. The company has expanded from its Oregon roots by opening an eastern U.S. operations base in Lumberton, North Carolina in September 2022, and augments flight work with technical consulting on helicopter project feasibility, safety, and cost.

Name

Heli-Dunn

Legal name

T. Scott Dunn Construction, Inc.

Website

https://heli-dunn.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2004

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Heli-Dunn is a family-owned helicopter services company using patented aerial tools (Heli-Saw, Heli-Feller, Vertical Grapple) on AS350 aircraft to provide vegetation management, firefighting, and construction lift services to utility companies, government agencies, and construction firms across the U.S.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Aerial Vegetation Management and Helicopter Aviation Services

akta.pro primary industry

Helicopter Charter & Sightseeing (TLAFABAH)

Keywords

• Aerial vegetation management
• Helicopter utility services
• Power line right-of-way clearing
• Precision long line operations
• Aerial firefighting support

Headquarters

HQ city

Phoenix

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Helicopter Service Contracts: Contracted helicopter services for vegetation management, firefighting, construction lifts, and utility infrastructure maintenance. Services are provided to utility companies, federal land management agencies, and construction firms on a contracted project basis.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Heli-Dunn provides contracted helicopter aviation services for aerial vegetation management, firefighting support, utility infrastructure maintenance, and construction heavy-lift operations. The company deploys its fleet of Airbus AS350 AStar helicopters equipped with three proprietary tools (Heli-Saw, Heli-Feller, and Vertical Grapple) to serve utility companies, federal land management agencies, and construction firms on a project basis across the United States.

Product overview

Heli-Dunn offers a portfolio of proprietary aerial vegetation management tools deployed via their fleet of Airbus AS350 AStar helicopters. The core products include the Heli-Saw (aerial side-trimming saw), Heli-Feller (aerial tree felling device), and Vertical Grapple (vegetation removal tool). These specialized tools are offered as services to utility companies, construction firms, and government agencies for vegetation management along power line right-of-ways, storm response, firefighting support, and precision long-line construction services. The company operates from bases in Medford, Oregon and Lumberton, North Carolina.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Heli-Feller: Industry changing aerial tree felling device that precisely removes trees near power lines or infrastructure. Designed and patented by T. Scott Dunn Inc.
• Heli-Saw
• Vertical Grapple

Products and services

• Heli-Feller An industry-changing aerial felling device exclusively operated by Heli-Dunn using AS-350 helicopters to precisely remove trees near power lines or infrastructure in difficult or inaccessible terrain. It works from the top of the tree down, grappling and cutting sections with pilot precision, then maneuvering and releasing cut sections to a desirable location, providing true positive control during felling operations.
• Heli-Saw An aerially applied saw exclusively operated by Heli-Dunn used to side trim vegetation along power line right-of-ways or travel corridors. Designed for harsh western forest conditions with large diameter trees in steep terrain, it can complete several miles of side trimming per day in both accessible and non-accessible terrain.
• Vertical Grapple A versatile aerial grapple tool used for logging, storm response, right-of-way cleanup, and vegetation removal in environmentally sensitive areas where vehicle travel is not permitted. Utilizes a 200-foot long line for placement in heavy canopy and achieves 20 to 60 ton per hour production rates with no soil disturbance.
• Utility and Construction Lift Services Contracted helicopter services covering all aspects of construction lift and powerline maintenance including patrol, Helicopter External Cargo (HEC), pole sets, wire-pull, HVAC lifts, and cell tower lifts for construction and infrastructure companies working in remote or inaccessible areas.
• Firefighting and Land Management Services Helicopter services contracted by federal and state agencies to assist in firefighting emergencies and to manage and conserve federal land and natural resources, leveraging precision long-line pilot expertise in fire suppression, aerial ignition, and back country logistics.
• Helicopter Project Consulting Project consultation addressing technical issues, safety, logistics, project budget, and cost concerns for proposed helicopter utilization projects, delivered to customers evaluating helicopter feasibility for project implementation.

Quantifiable outcome

• Several miles of side trimming per day achievable with Heli-Saw
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Davey Tree Expert: Davey Tree is a major utility vegetation management and tree care services provider serving investor-owned utilities, municipalities, and government agencies. It overlaps with Heli-Dunn's utility customer segment and right-of-way vegetation management use cases, with Davey offering a broader portfolio of ground-based and consulting services.
• Asplundh Tree Expert: Asplundh is the largest utility vegetation management contractor in North America, performing line clearance and tree work for the same utility customer base as Heli-Dunn. Both companies address vegetation encroachment on power lines, though Asplundh primarily uses ground crews and manual methods where Heli-Dunn deploys patented aerial tools.
• Wright Tree Service: Wright Tree Service specializes in vegetation management for electric utilities, including line clearance and storm response. Now part of the Asplundh family of companies, it serves the same utility customers with similar line-clearance use cases, making it a direct competitor in Heli-Dunn's primary vertical.
• Helicopter Applicators Inc. Helicopter Applicators Inc. is a specialty aerial application operator using manned helicopters for agricultural, forestry, and right-of-way spraying. It is directly comparable to Heli-Dunn as a small specialty helicopter operator applying proprietary tools aerially, with overlap in forest management and aerial services for utility and government customers.
• Trees Inc. Trees Inc. is a specialty utility vegetation management and line clearance contractor serving electric utilities across the United States. It is a direct peer in the same customer vertical (utilities) and same core use case (vegetation management around power lines), making it one of the closest competitors to Heli-Dunn's ground-based and aerial offerings.
• Coulson Aviation: Coulson Aviation operates large air tankers and helicopters for aerial firefighting and forest management, including utility-adjacent wildfire response. It is directly comparable to Heli-Dunn in its use of helicopters for vegetation and wildfire-related missions, though at significantly greater fleet scale.

Emerging players

• 10 Tanker Air Carrier: 10 Tanker Air Carrier operates next-generation airtankers for aerial firefighting and is part of the Coulson Group. It represents an adjacent peer in aerial fire and forest management services, partially overlapping with Heli-Dunn's firefighting and storm-response work but focused on fixed-wing tankers rather than rotorcraft.

Broad incumbents

• Bristow Group: Bristow Group is a large global helicopter operator providing offshore energy, search and rescue, and aerial services. While it does not specialize in utility vegetation management, it has the fleet scale and capital base to enter Heli-Dunn's niche with proprietary tooling or to compete for large multi-region utility contracts.
• CHC Helicopter: CHC Helicopter is a global helicopter services provider serving offshore energy, search and rescue, and government customers. It represents the broader incumbent class of helicopter operators with capital and geographic reach Heli-Dunn lacks, and overlaps with Heli-Dunn in aerial services for utility and infrastructure customers.
• PHI Aviation: PHI Aviation is one of the largest helicopter operators in the world, focused on oil and gas crew change, air medical, and utility-scale aerial services. It has scale and AS350 fleet experience relevant to Heli-Dunn's operations, though its primary customer base is energy rather than utility line clearance.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/Heli-Dunn-448458528672582
• Xx.com/jimdunn2013

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Heli-Dunn