-
Get involved.
We want your input!
Apply for Membership and join the conversations about everything related to broadcasting.
After we receive your registration, a moderator will review it. After your registration is approved, you will be permitted to post.
If you use a disposable or false email address, your registration will be rejected.
After your membership is approved, please take a minute to tell us a little bit about yourself.
https://www.radiodiscussions.com/forums/introduce-yourself.1088/
Thanks in advance and have fun!
RadioDiscussions Administrators
DBO Ends Helicopter Traffic Reports????
- Thread starter DOGDOG
- Start date
MISLEADING TITLE.. i clicked it cuse i thought you were implying the end of the station
clickbait.
I added "... helicopter traffic reports" to the title.
It wouldn't come as a total shock. Cox retired their WSB-AM helicopter earlier this year.
mediaconfidential.blogspot.com
There are better and cheaper options.
Atlanta Radio: End of An Era..WSB Radio Skycopter Retired
The WSB Radio Skycopter, a renowned traffic reporting helicopter, has been retired service after decades of providing critical traffic updat...
mediaconfidential.blogspot.com
There are better and cheaper options.
It was a year ago this month, when i Heart permanently grounded 'KF-Eye In The Sky'. It was the end of an era.
Are helicopters/planes for traffic reports still in use anywhere?
Are helicopters/planes for traffic reports still in use anywhere?
Well I mainly see TV helicopters for Breaking News events like wildfires, landslides and others major events where its needed.
I'm sure they are. There's still a few news choppers out there, mostly in the largest markets, and traffic is a good use to ensure they get used on a regular basis.
Paying half a million dollars a year for a helicopter (and pilot), to only use it when there's a wildfire or tornado is a terrible waste.
Sinclair Becomes First Broadcast Media Company Approved by FAA to Pilot Drones Over People Without Waiver for Newsgathering - Sinclair, Inc
In Partnership with Virginia Tech BALTIMORE – Sinclair, one of the nation’s leading media companies, has achieved a groundbreaking milestone in drone journalism. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has accepted Sinclair’s Declaration of Compliance for Operations Over People, making...
sbgi.net
I also kind of get the other part of the argument about helicopter and airplanes use on TV and radio became about getting more local TV stations to get approvals to use drones for news gathering purposes as seen here. So far Sinclair was one of the groups getting approvals to use drones for news purposes.
Many, if not most main traffic routes now have cameras and sensors, so traffic reports are computer generated and updated instantly.
My understanding is the Total Traffic (old Metro) helicopter flies in the morning as a "pool" helicopter for the local TV stations that have local news programs. Radio reports for WDBO from the helicopter were eliminated well over a year ago. It also flies on demand when Spectrum News calls for it. Most media helicopters are shared via contract with multiple stations in a market. Sometimes it's a monthly rotation on which station's news desk gets to "call it out" for a particular week or month. In larger markets, some stations still lease their own, but I believe that's becoming rare.
I don't know if you consider Kansas City a larger market, but I think KMBC-TV is the only station in the area with a news/traffic chopper and dedicated pilot:
KMBC 9 News Team
Veteran helicopter pilot and traffic reporter Johnny Rowlands is the Chief pilot of KMBC's NewsChopper 9. Johnny's traffic reports can be heard every weekday on "FirstNews" between 5 a.
www.kmbc.com
And Apps like Waze contain accurate and timely driver-reported traffic issues and provide alternative routes as needed.
Keep in mind that most radio traffic services use Waze themselves. The main benefit of radio is they provide the information. It's similar to going to a restaurant. You can make a hamburger yourself. But McDonalds will do the work for you.
As long as companies like iHeart's TTWN and Audacy's traffic division can sell advertising, the reports will still be a part of radio programming. They also have contracts with automobile manufactures for data on their dashboards. The data entered by TTWN staff creates the maps used by some TV stations and appears on the dash for certain drivers who pay for the service that came with the car. Once those contracts dry up, it's game over for the traffic / weather departments.