How the Vita Rescue System Is Changing Helicopter Hoist Operations
here’s a moment in every helicopter hoist operation when control becomes everything.
The aircraft hovers in the air, rotor wash pushing against the rescue line, while the crew below braces for movement. In those few seconds, physics becomes both a challenge and a risk, a swinging litter, a spinning basket, a broken tagline that turns precision into uncertainty.
That’s where the Vita Rescue System (VRS) changes the equation.
The VRS was engineered to do what human skill alone can’t; bring total stability to a rescue load in motion. Using a thrust-vectoring design and bi-directional electric propulsion, the system senses and corrects for instability faster than human reflexes can register. It processes more than a thousand data points every second, instantly countering spin, sway, or oscillation with controlled bursts of directional thrust.
In practice, that means no swing, no spin, no fighting taglines against the wind.
“The VRS gives the operator complete control,” says Cody Berg, ARS Hoist Trainer. “It doesn’t just respond, it predicts and adjusts, keeping the load perfectly balanced.”
In the VRS Product Highlight video, the effect is striking. The system senses movement and stabilizes the load before it can build momentum, even in strong winds and turbulent air. The load steadies mid-air, unmoving against the chaos around it, and the crew above gains the rarest commodity in a rescue: calm.
Control of the VRS is handled through a wireless pendant that allows the operator to guide or rotate the load from up to 1,000 feet away. The system can autonomously stabilize, or the operator can take manual control for precise positioning, reducing the need for taglines, eliminating the need to fight the physics below. The result is a faster, safer hoist and a more efficient use of time and fuel in the air.
Every feature of the VRS was built for the realities of rescue work. It integrates seamlessly with existing helicopter hoist kits, from Sked and Stokes litters to baskets, attaching through a quick-connect interface that’s ready in seconds. Compact and durable, the unit weighs about 65 lbs., with a rugged housing that protects internal systems during field use. Its Lithium Iron Phosphate batteries are cold-swappable, providing consistent power in harsh environments, and the housing itself is waterproof to a meter deep for up to half an hour, a critical safeguard for maritime and flood rescues.
The impact of that engineering goes beyond stability. Shorter hover times mean reduced pilot fatigue, lower fuel burn, and less mechanical strain on the aircraft. Crews can perform extractions without taglines or additional ground coordination, cutting down risk exposure and mission duration. What once demanded a perfect combination of timing, teamwork, and luck is now driven by precision.
The VRS isn’t confined to the lab, it’s been tested and proven in real operations. CAL FIRE has adopted the system across its Firehawk fleet, leveraging its stabilization capabilities in demanding hoist environments. The U.S. Air Force Reserve, Army National Guard and Air National Guard have evaluated and deployed the technology under active mission conditions, validating its performance during extractions and MEDEVAC operations.
In every mission, the VRS brings something new to the air: control. Where there was once instability, there is now precision. Where there was risk, there is confidence. And for the person waiting below, the one the crew came to save, that difference is everything.
The Vita Rescue System is redefining what’s possible when technology, training, and human determination work together, turning the most unpredictable part of rescue into something beautifully controlled.
