Heliports

A HELIPORT by definition is an area of land, water, or structure used or intended to be used for the landing and takeoff of helicopters and includes its buildings and facilities if any. In other words it is a small airport suitable for use by helicopters and some other vertical lift platforms. Designated heliports typically contain one or more Touchdown and Liftoff Area and may also have limited facilities such as fuel or hangars. In some larger towns and cities, customs facilities may also be available.

The early advocates of helicopters hoped that heliports would become widespread, but they have become contentious in urban areas due to the unpleasant noise caused by helicopter traffic.

Other terms used to refer to a heliport are:

The airspace immediately surrounding the heliport is called the Primary Surface. This area coincides in shape and size with the designated take-off and landing area. This surface is a horizontal plane equal to the elevation of the established heliport elevation. The Primary Surface is further broken down into three distinct regions. These are, the Touchdown and Liftoff (TLOF) area, the Final Approach and Takeoff (FATO) area and the Safety Area. The TLOF is a load-bearing, generally paved area, normally centered in the FATO, on which the helicopter lands and/or takes off. The FATO is a defined area over which the pilot completes the final phase of the approach to a hover or a landing and from which the pilot initiates takeoff. The FATO elevation is the lowest elevation of the edge of the TLOF. The Safety Area is a defined area on a heliport surrounding the FATO intended to reduce the risk of damage to helicopters accidentally diverging from the FATO.

In a large metropolitan and urban areas a heliport can serve passengers needing to quickly move within the city or to outlying regions. Generally heliports can be situated closer to a town or city center than an airport for fixed-wing aircraft. The advantage in flying by helicopter to a destination or even to the city's main airport is that travel can be much faster than driving. As an example, the Downtown Manhattan Heliport in New York City provides scheduled service to John F. Kennedy International Airport and is used to move wealthy persons and important goods quickly to destinations as far away as Maryland.

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