Scale the Mountains with Western Sky Helicopters

Imagine yourself savoring a mountain-top picnic in Arizona with its diverse, wild and varied beauty. That very experience and more can be had through Western Sky Helicopters.

Vanessa Clifton, President and CEO of Western Sky Helicopters, loves offering exotic helicopter tours and charters to beautiful landscapes. You can take helicopter tours in the Metro Phoenix and Scottdale areas or charters ranging from Scottsdale, Sedona, Superstition Mountains and Desert Lake or even simply city and metro tours.

Catering to high-end customers, Western Sky Helicopters offers exclusive, private tours for up to one hour for two people. Western Sky Helicopter also offers charters to get you someplace you need to go quickly – including occasional landing at a client’s hotel (high-end properties).

Charters are only limited by time and needed fuel stops. Vanessa has even had companies charter Western Sky Helicopters to ferry an employee to the top of a mountain to repair vital antennas linking internet services to residents. The company’s ability to offer such comprehensive services in addition to luxury private experiences differentiates them from competitors.

Vanessa fondly remembers an unusual and wonderful client, a rapper who hired Western Sky Helicopters to fly him to a location for shooting a music video. After filming from the rooftop helipad, the company took him on an aerial tour of the landscape.

Western Sky Helicopters is a small family-owned business that was founded in 2015. Vanessa met her husband of 23 years through aviation. Chief pilot and co-owner of the company, her husband handles flight operations management while she handles the day-to-day business operations. Vanessa has been involved with helicopters for quite a long time. Now, one of their children is learning how to fly a helicopter.

Witnessing the shutdown of many companies during the 2008 economic crash, Vanessa realized the market opportunity to open a helicopter touring business. Not looking back, she went for it.

Although successful, COVID proved a new challenge. But the company worked hard to thrive by diversifying, realizing the bulk of business is transporting people efficiently while offering unique experiences in our country’s natural beauty.

Before taking a helicopter tour from any company, Vanessa urges you to know their safety record and the pilot’s experience before embarking. Western Sky Helicopters uses only EMS/law enforcement-experienced pilots. Vanessa emphasizes that their pilots have the most hours and the best safety records.

Reputation management software helps spread the word and brings new customers as well as joining local business networks such as Visit Phoenix, Experience Scottsdale and Cape Creek (tourism bureau). Western Sky Helicopters has earned numerous awards such as BBB Accredited: Best of 2020 and 2021 and Air Park News: Best Helicopter Service Provider.

Operating at the most economical price possible, Western Sky Helicopters believes in giving back to the community and donates to many organizations: Bidding on silent auction items, golf ball drops, sponsoring the local Cactus Shadows High School’s band and varsity football team and, recently, flying a 9-year-old kidney patient to the Kidney Foundation for a fundraiser.