

In fact, its an idea that the FAA encourages.

Opening the lines of communication is always a good idea. It’s inside of controlled airspace, which means I would need to get airspace authorization to fly here anyway but there’s so much other stuff circled in orange (schools, jails, etc.), I can imagine it would be easy to lose sight of the fact that there’s a heliport right in the middle of that map.Īnother thing you may want to do (especially if you fly near a specific heliport a lot) is reach out to the heliport. But you have to zoom way in to get the text telling you what it is. The orange circle in the middle is a heliport at a hospital close to my house. But, because heliports aren’t necessarily within controlled airspace, they can be easy to miss. Obviously, if you need airspace authorization to fly near a specific heliport because it is in controlled airspace, you will be aware that it is there. The first is just to be aware of the heliport. While the rules surrounding helipads just aren’t that complicated, there are several things you can do to be a responsible drone pilot. Then all you can do is sit back and wait.
Helipad drone shop manual#
If the heliport is in one of those unfortunate places where you can only get manual approval, you’ll need to submit your request through the FAA’s Drone Zone. This will probably happen by using your favorite LAANC provider (Airmap, Kittyhawk, etc.). If the heliport is within controlled airspace, you’re just going to go through the same procedures you’d normally use at any other airport to get authorization to fly. If the heliport that you want to fly near is not in controlled airspace, the FAA says you simply need to “ give way to all manned aircraft and not pose a collision hazard.“ Obviously, the way you treat an airport depends entirely on what type of airspace surrounds the airport. The first thing you will need to do is to treat the heliport the same way that you would treat an airport.

So, What am I Required to do if I Want to Fly Near a Heliport? That said, even when you don’t need authorization, there are a few other things you can do to avoid issues when flying your drone near a heliport. So, if the heliport is in controlled airspace, you will need airspace authorization to fly there. However, the FAA recommends that you treat the heliport the same way that you would treat an airport. There are no rules that prohibit you from flying your drone near a heliport (also called a helipad).
