Helipad

2025-10-17T16:09:04Z

2A02:A467:169B:1:4D64:A2D6:CDA7:1E31: /* Usage */ offshore platforms use helidecks as standard preferred access method.

{{Short description|Landing area or platform for helicopters}}

[[File:Helipad at Blessington Lakeside Resort - geograph.org.uk - 262175.jpg|thumb|right|A helipad in Ireland]]
[[File:Helipad.svg|thumbnail|Helipad area scheme]]

A '''helipad''' is the [[landing area]] of a [[heliport]], in use by [[helicopter]]s, [[powered lift]], and [[VTOL|vertical lift]] aircraft to land on surface.

While helicopters and powered lift aircraft are able to operate on a variety of relatively flat surfaces, a fabricated helipad provides a clearly marked hard surface away from obstacles where such aircraft can land safely.

Larger helipads, intended for use by helicopters and other [[VTOL|vertical take-off and landing]] (VTOL) aircraft, may be called ''vertiports.'' An example is Vertiport Chicago,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.vertiportchicago.com/|title=Home – Vertiport Chicago|website=Vertiport Chicago|access-date=2015-06-19|archive-date=2021-02-26|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210226030900/http://www.vertiportchicago.com/|url-status=live}}</ref> which opened in 2015.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://wgntv.com/2015/04/30/vertiport-opens-in-downtown-chicago/|title=Vertiport opens in downtown Chicago|date=30 April 2015|website=wgntv.com|access-date=19 June 2015|archive-date=14 August 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180814233514/https://wgntv.com/2015/04/30/vertiport-opens-in-downtown-chicago/|url-status=live}}</ref>

== Usage ==
[[File:PFC William B Baugh (ship) 2.jpg|thumb|There is a helipad in the back of this U.S. Navy [[Strategic Sealift Ships|Strategic Sealift Ship]].]]
Helipads may be located at a [[heliport]] or [[airport]] where fuel, [[air traffic control]] and service facilities for aircraft are available.

Most helipads are located away from populated areas due to sounds, winds, space and cost constraints. Some [[skyscraper]]s have one on their roofs to accommodate [[air taxi]] services. Some basic helipads are built on top of highrise buildings for evacuation in case of a major fire outbreak. Major police departments may use a dedicated helipad at heliports as a base for [[Police aviation|police helicopters]].

Large [[ship]]s and [[oil platform]]s usually have a helipad on board for either emergency use or as standard preferred means of boarding and offboarding. In such a case, the terms "[[helicopter deck]]", "helideck", or "helodeck" are used.

[[File:NH90 ÅUCS flygplats maj 2012.JPG|thumb|An [[NHI NH90]] (NH205) helicopter of the [[Finnish Army]] on the helipad of the [[Turku Central Hospital]] during an exercise]]

Helipads are common features at [[hospital]]s where they serve to facilitate [[medical evacuation]] or [[Air medical services|air ambulance]] transfers of patients to [[trauma center]]s or to accept patients from remote areas without local hospitals or facilities capable of providing the level of [[emergency medicine]] required. In [[Urban area|urban]] environments, these [[heliport]]s are sometimes located on the roof of the hospital.

Rooftop helipads sometimes display a large two-digit number, representing the weight limit (in thousands of pounds) of the pad. A second number may be present, representing the maximum rotor diameter in feet.<ref>[http://www.faa.gov/airports/resources/advisory_circulars/media/150-5390-2B/150_5390_2b.pdf FAA Advisory Circular 150/5390-2B] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091123054808/http://www.faa.gov/airports/resources/advisory_circulars/media/150-5390-2B/150_5390_2b.pdf |date=2009-11-23 }} page 51</ref>

[[Location identifier]]s are often, but not always, issued for helipads. They may be issued by the appropriate aviation authority. Authorized agencies include the [[Federal Aviation Administration]] in the United States, [[Transport Canada]] in Canada, the [[International Civil Aviation Organization]], and the [[International Air Transport Association]]. Some helipads may have location identifiers from multiple sources, and these identifiers may be of different format and name.

== Construction ==
Helipads are usually constructed out of concrete and are marked with a circle and/or a letter "H", so as to be visible from the air. Sometimes [[wildfire]] fighters will construct a temporary one from [[timber]] to receive supplies in remote areas. [[Rig mat]]s may be used to build helipads. Landing pads may also be constructed in extreme conditions such as on ice.

The world's highest helipad,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://adm.helipaddy.com/pad/view/6864/4e13e9c1f8e90193950b940e930fa1dd/|title=Helicopter landing at Point Sonam Siachen|website=adm.helipaddy.com|access-date=2015-11-01|archive-date=2016-03-04|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304064345/http://adm.helipaddy.com/pad/view/6864/4e13e9c1f8e90193950b940e930fa1dd/|url-status=live}}</ref> built by [[India]], is located on the [[Siachen Glacier]] at a height of 21,000 feet (6400 m) above sea level.<ref name="helipad">{{cite news|url=http://edition.cnn.com/2002/WORLD/asiapcf/south/05/20/siachen.kashmir/|title=Siachen: The world's highest cold war|author=Nick Easen|date=2003-09-17 |publisher=[[CNN]]|access-date=30 March 2009|archive-date=2016-08-23|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160823055149/http://edition.cnn.com/2002/WORLD/asiapcf/south/05/20/siachen.kashmir/|url-status=live}}</ref>

== Portability ==
A portable helipad is a helipad structure with a rugged frame that can be used to land helicopters in any areas with slopes of up to 30 degrees, such as hillsides, riverbeds and boggy areas. Portable helipads can be transported by helicopter or [[powered-lift]] to place them where a [[VTOL]] needs to land, as long as there are no insurmountable obstructions nearby.

== Gallery ==
<gallery>
File:Sun America Building Helipad.jpg|Helipad atop the [[SunAmerica Center]] in Century City, California, USA
File:Uni hosp coventry air ambulance 12l07.JPG|The main helipad at [[University Hospital Coventry]] in England
File:Oryx helicopter.jpg|A helicopter touches down on a helideck on board the [[HSV-2 Swift|High Speed Vessel ''Swift'']]
File:4303031141 4b89069e29 bHelicoptère.jpg|Floating helipads of the American [[hospital ship]] {{USS|Haven|AH-12}} waiting for helicopters to bring in [[Korean War]] wounded.
File:Bitexco Financial Tower Helipad.jpg|[[Bitexco Financial Tower]] Helipad, Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam
File:USS San Antonio flight deck.jpg|Helipads on the [[flight deck]] of [[USS San Antonio]]
File:Phare-d-Eddystone-Rocks.jpg|Helipad atop the [[Eddystone Lighthouse]] offshore [[Rame Head]]
File:Yorkshire Air Ambulance landing at Leeds General Infirmary (20th October 2016) 003.jpg|[[Yorkshire Air Ambulance]] helicopter landing on the roof of the [[Leeds General Infirmary]]
File:WLKY Studios.jpg|An example of a banked helipad (right) on the property of [[WLKY]], a television station in [[Louisville, Kentucky]], to allow its news helicopter to land on what is otherwise a steep hill sloping downwards towards the [[Ohio River]] front below.
</gallery>

== See also ==
{{Commons category|Heliports, helipads and helidecks}}
{{Wiktionary}}
* [[Helicopter landing officer]]
* [[Helicopter deck]]
* [[Heliport]]

== References ==
{{reflist}}

== Bibliography ==
* de Voogt, A.J. 2007. Helidrome Architecture. Rotterdam: 010 Publishers.
* ICAO 1995. Heliport manual. Montreal, Canada: ICAO Publications.

[[Category:Airfields]]
[[Category:Heliports]]

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Helipad