Jerry Grayson - Adventure & Challenge - Embracing disruption and navigating change as one ...

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Jerry Grayson

Embracing disruption and navigating change as one of the world’s leading helicopter pilots

Jerry Grayson’s extraordinary career as a helicopter pilot has seen him work in some of the most challenging environments around the world. With his resilience and quick-thinking, Jerry was able to carve a successful career for himself even when his entire field was disrupted by the advent of drones. He is the perfect speaker for discussing drones and digital disruption, risk management, teamwork, and leadership.

Jerry joined the Fleet Air Arm at just 17, making him the youngest helicopter pilot to ever serve in the Royal Navy. As a search and rescue pilot, he had to navigate stressful and highly dangerous missions to save lives out at sea. Across his 2500 hours of flight and 120 rescue missions, Jerry and his crew have managed to save over 70 lives.

Most notably in the infamous Fastnet Race, Jerry played a crucial role in saving desperate sailors from their sinking yachts. In another mission, he was tasked with rescuing a seriously ill crewman from a nuclear-armed submarine, made more difficult by the cat-and-mouse game with the Soviet Navy.

After eight years, Jerry had demonstrated his bravery and work ethic as the most decorated peacetime naval pilot in history. He was awarded the Air Force Cross (AFC) by the Queen for outstanding gallantry in search and rescue.

Since retiring from the Navy, Jerry worked as the leading aerial film director for some of the world’s biggest blockbusters in entertainment. He set up a production company that specialises in helicopter footage, and was heavily involved in the production of projects like Planet Earth, Black Hawk Down, and the James Bond film A View to a Kill. He also wrote, directed and shot the IMAX film The Earth Wins, covering the aftermath of some of the planet’s worst natural disasters across four continents.

Jerry has also contributed to the world of live sports, starting with the Sarajevo Winter Olympics in 1984. Soon after, he became a staple in sports broadcasting when he commanded the entire airspace for the Melbourne Commonwealth Games, the Asian Games in Doha, the Athens Olympics, and South Africa Soccer World Cup.

He also supplied the aerial filming unit for the F1 Motor Racing Grand Prix at Melbourne, UK, Brazil and South Korea, as well as for the worldwide broadcast of all motor races between 2010 and 2013. He even documented Mark Webber’s final race in F1, which he described as “heart-stopping”.

Jerry’s incredible career faced significant disruption in 2015 when drones became more prevalent. With its portable and remote capabilities, drones were a much more convenient method of capturing aerial footage than traditional helicopter shots. Realising the need to adapt quickly, Jerry embraced the disruption and helped his team understand the new technology to improve on their production quality.

An internationally recognised flight expert across manned and unmanned flight, Jerry continues to share his expertise with a range of organisations, including The Royal Australian Navy, the Defence Science & Technology Group, and the WA Department of Fire & Emergency Services. He also presents to a range of businesses and institutes, such as Optus, Metro Trains, Sword Active Risk, Bendigo Kangan Institute and Melbourne Grammar.

He has chaired and presented keynotes for The International Drone Expo in the USA, the Drone Zone at the Australian International Airshow, and London’s Commercial UAV Conference.

Jerry has also written two books, 'Rescue Pilot' and 'Film Pilot: From James Bond to Hurricane Katrina', giving readers an in-depth behind the scenes look at some of his most career-defining moments as a helicopter pilot.

Whether it’s dangerous rescue missions like the infamous Fastnet Yacht Race, covering live events like the Olympics, or filming major productions like Black Hawk Down, Jerry Grayson’s career is a story of resilience and determination. He draws on personal anecdotes to inspire his audiences to navigate change and embrace disruption throughout their professional lives.

Testimonial

"We were lucky enough to have Jerry Grayson as our guest speaker at our 2020 conference. Our brief to Jerry was to cover team engagement, empowerment and trust and also overcoming disruption and to say the least, he nailed it. Jerry is extremely engaging to the audience and continually wowed them with his real life experiences. Our post conference survey resulted in Jerry’s presentation being instrumental to a very successful day. I can recommend if you are looking for your next inspirational guest speaker."

Viva Energy Australia

"Jerry has the rare capacity to present the most serious issues we face as a global community in an engaging, articulate and humorous way. He is warm, witty, considered and poignant. He thankfully steers well clear of the evangelical approach but is extraordinarily adept in allowing the message to speak for itself. I highly recommend Jerry Grayson; he is a highly intelligent and entertaining speaker who would add enormous value in both educational and corporate settings."

Newington College

"Jerry Grayson presented as our keynote speaker. Jerry captivated the audience with the stories of his career and his rescue missions and he was also able to connect the audiences interest in "risk" with his critical decisions, leadership and team work as a rescue pilot. Jerry's openness to questions and willingness to mingle with the delegates was also very popular. I have no hesitation in recommending Jerry as an engaging speaker for any event!"

Risk Management Institute of Australasia (RMIA)

"We recently engaged Jerry to present at our annual conference on the topic of “Embracing Change”. Jerry is a charismatic and engaging presenter who has the ability to relate his life experiences in telling a captivating story that still delivers a strong and powerful message. Feedback from the audience of around 200 members was extremely positive and I would warmly recommend Jerry to any organisation or event that wants to challenge and motivate their audience."

JLTA

"What sets Jerry apart from the numerous story tellers out there on the keynote speaking circuit is the fact that he works with his ‘client' beforehand to understand the audience and the message that the client is trying to convey. From there he draws on his vast experience, tailors his message impeccably. When Jerry spoke to a group of emerging young leaders from Swimming Victoria clubs recently he was given the ‘graveyard session' - the last session of a long day. Yet he enthralled and challenged his audience for the whole hour... No matter your audience I cannot recommend Jerry highly enough. You will be awe struck, inspired and uplifted."

Swimming Victoria

"Jerry combines an intimate knowledge of his subject with a natural storyteller's ability to hold an audience. He has an easy style and injects just the right amount of humour at just the right time. He manages to speak with both assurance and warmth and has an excellent sense of timing, leaving the audience wanting more."

Panmure Gordon & Co

"Jerry was fantastic, he was the best first day speaker we have had over the last eight years. His presentation was highly interesting, motivational and captured the audiences’ attention from the beginning. He is a down-to-earth person with an amazing story to tell."

Dromana Secondary College