Niagara Helicopters

In the dual role of Ops Manager and Pilot, Rene has helped maintain Niagara Helicopters role as one of the premier attractions in the world. Rene joined the organization in 2005 and is a pilot/engineer with over seven years experience, the majority of which was with the Swiss Air Ambulance in Zurich performing high altitude search and rescues. His love of snow went along hand-in-hand with his excitement of being named to the Swiss National Snowboard team.

He currently has well over 2500 hours on the Bell 407 helicopter type and brings a wide range of talents to the team including, daily operation management, organizational skills and a focus on building a strong and safe working environment. With his “safety first” attitude, he ensures that we are proactive in preventing accidents and injuries to both clients and staff.

In the summer of 1985, Anna Pierce began working for Niagara Helicopters Limited in their Sales Department as a summer job. She continued working for the company while attending University completing an Honours BA in Psychology with a Minor in Marketing. Upon graduating, she was hired by Niagara Helicopters on a full-time basis as Assistant to the Operations and the Marketing Directors. While in this position, Ms. Pierce was taught the ins and outs of both the Tourism Industry as well as the Aviation Industry as a whole. In 1997, she was promoted to Marketing Director of the organization.

In 2006, Anna accepted a position with Niagara Falls Tourism as their Executive Director. Under her leadership there, she was able to build a new brand, develop a state-of-the-art website and develop a strong team of capable employees!
 In 2009, Anna returned to her NEW ROLE as Vice President! When the company was sold in 2011, Anna was promoted to Vice President and General Manager. Anna’s responsibilities include overseeing day-to-day operations, accounting, guest services, café, engineering, maintenance, sales & marketing and the front desk! Anna has been representing our company at trade shows around the world for over 2 decades. She also sits on a number of local (Winter Festival of Lights Board and Past Chair of the Niagara Falls Canada Chamber of Commerce) and tourism-related boards including the Tourism Industry Association of Ontario. She is proud to serve as the current Chair of the Destination Ontario Sectoral Advisory Committee and as a member of the Destination Canada Leisure Marketing Advisory Committee. 

Joe Giampa has been patrolling the grounds of Niagara Helicopters Limited for nearly 20 years. Joe is an excellent example of advancement from within. He started out as a Ground Crew Technician in 1989, furthered his education at Canadore College in the Aircraft Maintenance Technician program and has been a staple of our Maintenance Department for many years! Joe says that the best part of his job is the satisfaction of taking an aircraft apart and putting it back together into a safe-operating machine.

Tony Dempsey has been ensuring that our aircraft have met and exceeded safe operating standards for the past 20 years. Under his watchful eye, our Maintenance Department was awarded the prestigious Roland Groome Award for high quality aircraft maintenance in Ontario. Tony completed the Aircraft Maintenance Technician course and his Commercial Pilots license at Canadore College. As an engineer, the most
rewarding part of Tony's job is to have all helicopters run flawlessly all day, every day. As a pilot, he likes meeting new people from all over the world and leaving them with a smile on their face.