Effective September 1st, 2011, VERTEX Helicopters will begin performing Helicopter Hog Hunting (Aerial Feral Hog Eradication) as a "Landowner Agent" and as such, we will be selling the Gunner Seat for Helicopter Hog Hunts.
CLICK HERE FOR A LIST OF AVAILABLE HUNT DATES
What does this mean for you, the private hunter?
This means that as a private hunter, you are now allowed by the State of Texas to shoot feral hogs from a helicopter. Since we are a full-service helicopter company, we are offering this service to Private Hunters from all over the United States. We currently have over 150,000 acres of land in some of the most feral-hog damaged locations all around Texas where we are under contract as a Primary Agent to perform Aerial Hog Depredation for the Landowners. We are also currently in negotiations as Primary Agent for an additional 550,000 acres from all over the State of Texas.
CLICK HERE FOR A LIST OF AVAILABLE HUNT DATES
In order for you, as a private hunter, to be able to shoot from our helicopters, you must complete the following:
1.) Attend the VERTEX Helicopters Helicopter Hunting Safety Course. (See link below) This course costs $350 per person and is held every 2 weeks at our training facility at Hobby Airport in Houston, TX. This is MANDATORY. No class, no shooting. No exceptions.
2.) Pass a background check /TPWD check (You are getting into a US registered aircraft with a semi-automatic rifle. This means you can not have a felony conviction, and in order for us to verify this, you MUST go through the proper screening). If you perform this action with another helicopter company and they DON'T require a background check, you may be breaking a Federal Law.
3.) Purchase a Texas Hunting License (Hog hunting from the ground does NOT require a hunting license. Hunting for the AIR does.)
4.) Sign a release and indemnification statement for both the landowner and our company protecting both the landowner AND our company in the event that YOU, the Hunter, accidentally shoot a house, person, structure, livestock, or other object/lifeform, etc.. Yes...YOU, the person pulling the trigger, are the LIABLE party. This is no different than hunting from the ground. If you shoot a hole through our rotor system and/or damage our aircraft, You just bought it.
5.) Hourly rate for Helicopter Hog Hunting is $475 per flight hour, and you must pay in advance with a 3-hour minimum. All bookings require advance payment. Most people are booking 5 hour blocks. If you book 10 hours we will drop the hourly rate to $425. Depending on the geographical area, we may require a surcharge for fuel on top of the normal rates. These rates cover fuel, aircraft, pilot, and the added insurance requirements.
If the above requirments work for you, PLEASE CALL US TODAY AT 281-616-5095 or click on the CHAT WINDOW to the left of the web page so that we can get you into one of our classes as soon as possible. Our classes are filling rapidly, and the people who take the classes first get first right of refusal on the best hunting areas in Texas.
Looking for information about our Helicopter Hog Hunting Safety Course?
CLICK HERE to find out more , or continue reading to find out about our Feral Hog Control Services!
CLICK HERE FOR A LIST OF AVAILABLE HUNT DATES
FERAL HOG CONTROL
Texas is home to a serious feral hog problem; nearly 3.4 million at the last count ranking as the largest feral hog population in the U.S. Their numbers continue to increase due to their high reproductive potential and the lack of natural predators.
Feral hogs wreak havoc and cause extensive damage to property, livestock, crops and pastures across the state and frustrate landowners because in addition to the above, their destructive nature destroys fences, roads, ponds, fields and feed. The Texas AgriLife Extension Service estimates that statewide annual economic damage caused by feral hogs is $400 million and unless aggressive control measures are undertaken, the feral hog problem is expected to worsen in the years ahead.
VERTEX Helicopters is licensed by the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department for Aerial Wildlife and Exotic animal management. We can use our aerial expertise to be of assistance to Rangers, Ranchers, Farmers and Scientists in controlling feral animals that are wreaking havoc on their crops, pastures or livestock. This work includes but is not limited to the eradication and control of feral hogs, coyotes and bobcats.
Our team has been highly successful eradicating feral hogs on private land in Texas Counties utilizing a Schweizer 300C helicopter because of its versatility, maneuverability and relatively low running costs.
Our helicopter is flown by a highly experienced pilot and the gunner utilizes a .223 caliber, AR-15 semi-automatic rifle with 30 round magazines, (or when necessary, a 12-gauge automatic shotgun firing .00 buckshot from a 20 round magazine) from a specially designed side facing seat. This seating position, combined with the low-recoil, low-noise and low-weight of the rifle provide the perfect platform for a successful hunt.
Should a group of hogs numbering between 5-15 be flushed into an open area, we would expect a kill rate for that group of over 95%. The helicopters rotor downwash and engine noise are excellent at flushing the hogs into open areas and its maneuverability is unrivalled in pursuing hogs into kill positions without further damage to crops or pasture.
While it is impossible to say exactly how successful we will be on any given day, we would welcome the land-owners input as to areas that are most affected and any local knowledge that they feel would aid our success rate.
All pilots keep a daily flight log of operations recording times, locations, objectives, work carried out, authorizations of landowners and pilot and gunner license numbers for inspection at any time. This information is easily replicated for clients, ranchers and landowners for report analysis at the end of an established contract. |
Before using a Helicopter to manage wildlife, which includes Capture, Deprodate or Take, Herd, Count or Photograph Wildlife; Texas Parks and Wildlife requires a Land Owner Authorization Form to be filed with their Headquarters in Austin, Texas. |
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This form MUST be Completed in its Entirety and Faxed back to VERTEX Helicopters, the Holder of the Permit, to manage wildlife from an aircraft.
We must then sign and Fax it to TPWD in Austin, Once approved they fax it back with an appropriate Stamp and Designated LOA number, The approved LOA MUST be in hand BEFORE the Eradication, Count or Capture Project can begin.
VERTEX HELICOPTERS WILL NOT CAPTURE, DEPRODATE, TAKE, HERD, COUNT OR PHOTOGRAPH YOUR WILDLIFE WITH OUT AN APPROVED LOA. |
