Flightcom took off in 1983 and has been soaring ever since. The initial thrust of the business was noise. Too much of it. Flightcom founder and President, Brian VanderPloeg, was taking flight lessons in the early 1980s and found it hard to hear his instructor. “I wasn't learning fast enough because it was difficult to hear what my instructor was saying, ” Brian says. “It was impossible to understand the gibberish coming from the cabin speaker and my ears were ringing after every flight. ”
From noise came opportunity. As an entrepreneur well-grounded in electrical engineering, Brian began developing his own aircraft intercom. Demand skyrocketed when his product was named “Best Portable Intercom” in a 1986 Aviation Consumer magazine review. His company, originally called Oregon Avionics, became known for producing headsets and intercoms that were high in quality but low in cost.
From 1987 to 1994, the company introduced a full line of headsets. As his business grew, Brian recognized the need for headsets in other fields besides aviation. He eventually formed Sonetics Corporation as a parent company and renamed his avionics division Flightcom.
Shortly after, Firecom was created as a separate company to market a line of headsets, intercoms and radio interfaces for firefighters and ambulance drivers. As before, necessity (and noise) was the mother of invention. A firefighter approached Flightcom about making a headset that would prevent engine sirens from interfering with voice communications.
By the early 1990s, Flightcom had grown by 1,325% over a five-year period. In 1991 and 1992, Inc. magazine listed Flightcom as one of the 500 fastest growing companies in the nation.
Today, Flightcom has become an industry leader, employing 50 people and selling products all over the world. The company is now on a mission to push the envelope in design and engineering and develop products that are the most innovative on the market.
The revolutionary new Denali headset, with its ergonomic design and advanced acoustics, is the first bold step in this product evolution. It has raised the standard of headset performance to a higher level. Besides focusing on quality and innovation, Flightcom is planning to expand its product line and diversify into new applications. “High-noise industrial applications and subcontracting engineering expertise for OEMs are just two of the areas we're looking at, ” Brian states. “We want to always be prepared for whatever needs and markets emerge. ” Anyone who works in a noisy environment will like the sound of that.
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