Gian Franco Blower flies west Global helicopter pioneer and former HAI chair played pivotal role in global growth of vertical aviation. Gian Franco Blower, a significant figure in international vertical aviation and one of the leading proponents of the global rotorcraft community, died on Jun. 24, 2025. He was 82. Blower, who served as chairman of VAI (then known as HAI) in 1983–84, leaves behind a legacy spanning nearly six decades of leadership and service to the industry and association he helped shape. Born in Italy, Blower possessed a passion for aviation that came to fruition in 1967, when he became a certificated pilot of both helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft. From the early days of his career flying Hughes 269As to pioneering the use of heavy-lift Erickson S-64 Air Cranes in Europe, his career was as expansive as it was impactful. Soon after Blower began taking flying lessons for fixed-wing aircraft in the late 1960s, he joined a Cessna dealership, which was approached by Hughes Aircraft Co. to sell helicopters. In 1968, he cofounded the first commercial rotorcraft company in Italy, Elitos Helicopters Aérospatiale, and grew the organization into a successful enterprise. The company started to do small jobs, recalls Blower’s son Paolo. “My father never said no to anyone,” he says. Elitos’s first big contract was with Eni, an Italian oil company. By the late 1970s, Blower had expanded his influence into the trade association world, where his legacy is perhaps most deeply felt. Elected to the Board of Directors of the Helicopter Association of America in 1979, he rapidly rose through the ranks, being elected senior VP in 1980, president in 1981, and chairman in 1983. Under his leadership and international vision, the association was renamed Helicopter Association International (HAI), reflecting its growing global footprint. Blower’s career outside the United States was no less influential. He served in senior roles at United Technologies and Sikorsky Europe, interfacing with top officials across the aerospace, defense, and commercial sectors. In 1994, he founded Helitalia, which provided air ambulance, offshore, and cargo services. After selling the company to Bristow Helicopters in 1997, Blower launched G.C.I. Aviation Consulting, where he brokered one of the largest commercial helicopter lease agreements ever in Europe—bringing multiple firefighting S-64 Air Cranes to Italy through a groundbreaking contract with the Italian Civil Protection agency (Protezione Civile). That endeavor laid the groundwork for Blower’s most enduring operational legacy: European Air Crane, founded in 2005. Headquartered in Florence, Italy, the company remains Europe’s only certificated operator of the Erickson S-64 Air Crane and serves as a critical asset for Italy’s national firefighting service, Vigili del Fuoco. Today, European Air Crane operates a six-aircraft fleet that tackles hundreds of wildfires annually across the continent’s increasingly volatile climate zones. Blower’s daughter Anna Maria Blower now leads the company. A dedicated advocate for safety, innovation, and international cooperation in aviation, Blower also served on the boards of the European Helicopter Operators Committee and the Italian Helicopter Association. “Everything with him was aviation related,” remembers Anna. “No matter the conversation, it always reverted to talking about aviation.” Blower was a hands-on CEO, son Paolo recalls. “He loved to leave the office and spend time with pilots, mechanics, and logistics personnel and listen to their issues and contribute to solutions, often ending their talks over dinner or at the bar,” Paolo says. “He just loved being around his people.” Blower’s many accolades include the Lawrence D. Bell Memorial Award, honoring a career marked by innovative leadership, operational excellence, and enduring contributions to helicopter aviation worldwide. When Blower walked the floor at one of what would be his last HAI HELI-EXPO® (now VERTICON) shows, he talked to everyone, Anna observes. “My dad knew everybody. He knew their home. He knew their businesses,” she says, recalling her father’s remarkable memory. “Everybody was impressed and wanted to spend time with him because, no matter the business, he had ideas for them.” In an interview in the 2000s in which he reflected on his career, Blower conveyed no regrets about his professional journey. “I would choose the same path again—difficult, yes, but always rewarding,” he said. “Aviation has been my life’s joy and purpose.” Blower remained active in the industry into his later years, mentoring young professionals and championing helicopter aviation’s role in public service.
