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Heather Michele Howley started her aviation business, Independent Helicopters, in New Windsor, New York, on September 15, 2008, with twenty-five dollars and a single leased Robinson R22 helicopter. Operating out of Stewart International Airport, she expanded the business in 2013 to include a second location at Saratoga County Airport in Ballston Spa. She serves as an FAA Designated Pilot Examiner for helicopters, administering Private Pilot, Commercial Pilot, Instrument Rating, ATP, and Flight Instructor (CFI) practical tests.
Howley has accumulated over 10,000 total flight hours and holds an ATP certificate, a Certified Flight Instructor - Instrument Helicopter (CFII) rating, and an Advanced Ground Instructor rating. She is qualified in Robinson R22, Robinson R44, Bell, and Airbus AStar helicopters. Raised in Niskayuna, New York, she worked at an emergency animal clinic and planned to become a veterinarian before a trip to Europe inspired her to pursue flight training. She completed her studies at Hudson Valley Community College and funded her training in California and Colorado by working two full-time jobs. After working as an instructor for Silver State Helicopters until its 2008 bankruptcy, she taught at Stewart Base before launching her own company at age 25.
Active in the aviation community, Howley is an FAA Safety Team (FAASTeam) Representative and a member of Whirly-Girls International, Women in Aviation International, and The Ninety-Nines. Her outreach includes helping the Girl Scouts earn aviation badges and serving on the Distribution Committee of the Community Foundation of Orange, Sullivan and Rockland. In 2020, she received the Trowell-Harris Mentor Award from the Tuskegee Airmen, and she was honored as a "40 Under 40" recipient by the Albany Business Review in 2014. Her 2013 marriage to Marius Ivascu featured a ceremony where she piloted a Robinson R44 to drop her groom via parachute into the reception at the Old Rhinebeck Aerodrome; she suffered the loss of her husband in 2014.