HAI names its 2024 Pilot of the Year

Helicopter Association International (HAI) has named Michael Sagely of the Los Angeles County Fire Department (LACoFD) as the recipient of its 2024 Salute to Excellence Pilot of the Year Award.

HAI will present the award to Sagely at a ceremony on 26 February at HAI Heli-Expo 2024, which is being held in Anaheim, California.

The award recognizes Sagely’s “extraordinary professionalism, leadership, and skill” throughout the course of his career.

Two decades in the military

Sagely first learned to fly helicopters in 1984, having joined the US Army. There, he was accepted into flight school, graduating with distinction from the Warrant Officer Candidate School. He was subsequently an honor graduate from primary flight school, qualifying to fly the UH-60 Black Hawk.

After assignment to the Army’s 82nd Airborne Division, Sagely progressed rapidly, being selected for the instructor pilot course before becoming a Chief Warrant Officer 2 (CW2).

During his 22 years in the army, he served in Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm during the 1990–91 Gulf War, and was later accepted into the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment (Airborne), where he flew elite special combat missions in multiple aircraft types.

He received seven Air Medals and a Bronze Star for his actions in combat operations, and earned a bachelor’s degree in Professional Aeronautics with a minor in Aviation Safety.

A new career in firefighting

After retiring from the army, Sagely began working as a contract fire pilot for the Angeles National Forest Rappel/Helitack crew, before being hired by the Santa Barbara County Fire Department.

Sagely then joined the LACoFD in 2009 as a pilot, where he was promoted to the role of Senior Pilot in less than two years. He has since earned two valor awards from the department, and three separate rescue awards from Sikorsky for heroism.

“In the military, we had a saying: Leave the foxhole better than you found it,” said Sagely. “If I were to highlight one piece of my career, it is my focus on the overall health of the organizations where I work, from adjusting attitudes and approaches to work to creating processes and procedures that help everything run more efficiently and safely.”

HAI also recently announced that it is commemorating its 75th anniversary.