DCSO helicopter gets ‘facelift’ from Arista Aviation

“An absolutely great tool,” is what Level Plains Police Chief Keith Gray called the newly painted helicopter shining in the sunlight on the tarmac at Arista Aviation Services LLC in Enterprise April 3.

The helicopter’s fresh facelift, complete with the Dale County Sheriff’s Department logo, was unveiled after being stripped, sanded and painted by Arista Aviation personnel. “This is great for the whole community,” Gray said. “This is great for law enforcement.”

Dale County Sheriff Wally Olson agreed. “The fact that we have companies like Arista in our area willing to partner with our (law enforcement) agencies shows the commitment of the citizens of the Wiregrass not just in providing jobs that impact our local economy but also helping with resources so that we have the tools necessary in helping provide a safer environment for our community,” Olson said.

“Our airborne assets help our community in so many ways from assisting in finding our lost loved ones to finding those violent offenders that may be impossible to find without it,” Olson said. “The Wiregrass Aviation Support Program is made up of a lot of entities and we appreciate our staff who oversee us having assets like this for our community.

“The partnership that we have with Arista means a lot,” Olson added. “Their product is unbelievable.”

Taking the law enforcement helicopter from olive drab to its new exterior was the handiwork of the Arista Aviation Paint Shop. The paint job took about four hours, said Paint Shop Supervisor Zack McLaney. “We sanded it down and stripped it and started fresh.”

“We love being part of the community,” said Rich Enderle, president of Arista Aviation, explaining his company’s donation of services to the law enforcement agency. “It’s great to be able to support the first responders who keep us safe.

“We’re happy to be in the Wiregrass and it is part of our family,” Enderle said. “We’ve got the best paint crew, the best maintenance team. I’m proud of the entire work force.

“We do it by the book but we make sure we give our customer what they need and deliver a quality product,” he added. “That’s exactly what they did here.”

Arista Aviation’s Vice President of Business Operations Rob Dodson agreed. “We want to give back because the state of Alabama and the Wiregrass area have been good to us,” Dodson said. “Part of our mission statement is to help the community as much as possible and this is one way we can lend our talents and support to local law enforcement.”

“We are very appreciative of Arista,” said Dale County Commissioner Steve McKinnon. “They do a great job. They do it for the community.

“This aviation unit is very critical to the county,” McKinnon said. “There have been several lives saved during missions flown.”

“When we’re searching for that violent offender or looking for that loved one, this is another asset we have that we can call on,” Olson said.

Level Plains Mayor Bruce Grantham agreed. “The aviation support is very important to the county,” Grantham said. “Whenever we need air support, they respond quickly.”