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Concept
Helipad
Summary
A helipad is a landing area or platform for helicopters and powered lift aircraft.
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 vertical take-off and landing aircraft (VTOL), may be called vertiports. An example is Vertiport Chicago, which opened in 2015.
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 remote from populated areas due to sounds, winds, space and cost constraints. Some skyscrapers 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 helicopters.
Large ships and oil platforms usually have a helipad on board for emergency use. In such a case, the terms "helicopter deck", "helideck", or "helodeck" are used.
Helipads are common features at hospitals where they serve to facilitate medical evacuation or air ambulance transfers of patients to trauma centers or to accept patients from remote areas without local hospitals or facilities capable of providing the level of emergency medicine required. In urban environments, these heliports 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.
Location identifiers 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.
Official source
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