O/T helicopter landing pad

[Boney]

Owdo all,

I am in the process of setting up a large warehouse with lots of outer buildings, as part of the emergency resposnse just wondered if anybody knew minimum size of landing pad for air ambulance?

Boney

[sedsy]

Ask the Ambulance service?

My step Dad is quite high up in the service and often goes in the air red thingy.

Will ask him.

Sedsy

[langy]

Whats wrong with having land based emergency vehicles accesing the area ? or is this taking the absolute worst scenario into account

[CrashBangWallop]

just wondered if anybody knew minimum size of landing pad for air ambulance?

At least the diameter of the blades, I would have thought.      

[Boney]

Hi,

Sedsy, much appreciated

Langy - yes worst case scenario is right

Crashbangwallop      

Boney

[kipford]

Talk to the CAA, they will have regs on minimum size and all the regulatory items you need to consider.

PS in the end decision where to land will be at the discretion of the pilot

[peter pan]

Must take care when designing a space for helicopters, and ideally it must be as far as possible away from high sided buildings. Some crashes have ocurred owing to vortex ring effect in which air which has been displaced downwards by the rotor system moves sideways untill it hits the wall of the adjacent building, it then rises up the wall and can be drawn back into the top of the rotor system. The `ring' of fast moving air will then take away lift from that side of the rotor, causing the aircraft to roll (in towards the building) at a rate which is outside the limit which can be coped with by the cyclic. Followed by expensive crunching noises. Also some heavily laden helicopters may not be able to lift vertically out of the space in question requiring translational lift to gain height.

[The Irv]

Unless it is for regular use, I don't think there are many rules other than the space must be big enough to accomodate the helicopter in question. We're currently putting one in at a warehouse as well.

I'm assuming you just want to create a space big enough to get a helicopter to land during an emergency rather than having a bespoke pad for regular use.

Speak to the british helicopter advisory board for the recommended dimensions on 01276 856100 http://www.bhab.org/ and the CAA although the CAA can at times be a nightmare to deal with from personal experience.

[peter pan]

The question I guess must be `what space is SAFE for a helicopter to land/take off in, not just what space will it fit into, When doing joy flights etc, we were obliged to carry out a survey at each location, with the CAA prescribing distances to nearby possible obstacles relevant to which aircraft type was going to be used. It may be possible to get a helicopter relatively safely into a certain space, which it cannot get out of, not much use in an emergency I am afraid. Unless the machine is taken out by lorry!

[Mark Stanton]

QUOTE

owing to vortex ring effect

I'll never go to that curry house again          

[The Irv]

Yup I meant that as well but my wording wasn't the best (a geet gruff Geordie speaking here!!!), it must be able to get out of it again.

The bhab have a list of spacing recommendations for different helicopter types out there.

When we designed ours all we had to do was mark out a space in the car park for the use of the helicopter and there was a list of maximum heights for trees, lighting columns etc depending on their distance from the area which was associated with the helicopter type that was most likely to use it.

[peter pan]

Vortex ring is effectively eating what you have just put out! nasty!

[Boney]

Guys,

thanks guys, stretcher it is then  

Boney

[Hammy]

5' 6"

Not wishing to be rude BUT...I'd  seek advice through some other channel  - There must be codes about this....  When it goes pointy bits up  & your boss sez "where did you get the info ?"  do you really want to say "Hammy on The WSCC forum said 5' 6" would be ok"  ................... Sorry but you'd probably get fired if your boss sees you using this route to get data........................

[peter pan]

As noted the CAA will be the authority which must be referred to, Just dont expect the exercize to be quick or cheap!