So you want to build a heliport/vertiport?

In the first of a three-part feature, Emma Kelly considers the myriad of factors that must be considered when building a Heliport or Vertiport.

This article was published across the European Rotors Show Dailies 2024, and was available to attendees at the event from 4-7 November 2024. To read more articles like this, you can apply for your complimentary subscription today.

A multitude of factors have to be taken into consideration when designing and developing a heliport, and indeed future vertiports, to ensure they are safe, efficient and fit for purpose.

According to Amin Hamzavian, Managing Director of aviation consultancy Avlaw, which has been planning and designing helicopter landing sites (HLS) since 2012, facilities have to be designed to accommodate the helicopters and future eVTOL aircraft that will use them.

Some of the most important considerations to ensure an HLS is fit for purpose are the need for site-specific wind analysis, safeguarding nominated flight paths from obstacles, fire safety and protection, as well as taking into account rotorwash and its impacts on people and objects on the ground, says Peter Simpson, Avlaw’s Heliport Planning and Design Specialist.

Avlaw can work with clients at each step of the process, from site selection to construction, commissioning, and operations. The process starts with the “discovery phase,” which includes kick-off meetings with the client to understand their needs and objectives, says Hamzavian.

With any site, assessing the local obstacle environment is a prerequisite. You will also need to design based on an assessment of the physical and operational characteristics of a range of aircraft types that the facility is intended to serve within its design life, says Simpson.

Another crucial step is the analysis of site-specific wind data to identify optimum flightpath track alignment options and overall usability.

Once all that is done, you can move on to project definition and preparation of a Concept Design Report. You also need to address any local planning requirements, which might call for an Aeronautical Impact Assessment to be prepared and supplement a Development Application.

You will also need to select construction technology and complete a detailed design in conjunction with architects, builders and the project’s structural engineer.

Once that is complete, you have the procurement and construction process, culminating in the commissioning of the facility to ensure the design intent is met.

Air Synapsis has designed, constructed, and certified Dubai’s new elevated helipad with Deck integrated Firefighting System in Habtoor City, downtown Dubai.

“Inspections and testing are undertaken with the associated building services designers and outside services, as well as commissioning fights with the operators the facility is intended to serve,” says Hamzavian.

The process is multi-faceted and challenging.

“Engaging a qualified heliport consultant early is crucial to adopting a proactive safety management approach,” says Karim Hijazi, Managing Director of Dubai-based aviation consultant Air Synapsis, which has been involved in approximately 150 heliport and vertiport projects. “Poorly designed facilities can compromise safety and introduce unnecessary restrictions that could have been avoided through forward planning,” he says.

Air Synapsis conducts early-stage risk assessment to incorporate safety measures directly into the design, which ensures a smooth handover to operators, says Hijazi. The company can provide complete turnkey solutions, including design, equipment procurement, construction, certification, and operational support through to training, audits and safety management systems.

Hijazi adds that downwash, performance class, firefighting, and staffing are all crucial considerations for getting a heliport right. Heliports are often designed with insufficient dimensions, underestimating the hazards of rotor downwash, he says. In addition, the location and operational environment of the heliport, close to congested areas, for example, can require performance class one operations, increasing dimensional requirements based on flight manual specifications.

Substantial firefighting resources are required under current regulations, such as foam-based systems, which cannot be overlooked. “Depending on the heliport type – surface or elevated – and the helicopter category, water/foam requirements can range from 1,000-10,000 litres. This poses challenges for remote sites, necessitating dedicated water storage and pumping equipment,” he says, while foams require proper containment and disposal.

“Engaging a qualified heliport consultant early is crucial to adopting a proactive safety management approach.” 

Karim Hijazi, Managing Director, Air Synapsis

Getting personnel – Staffing requirements for safe heliport/vertiport operations

Adequate staffing is often an area that is overlooked during the planning stage, according to Hijazi. “Personnel must be present during operations to perform inspections, control access, and handle firefighting and rescue duties if needed,” he says. Addressing these issues early helps avoid delays, certification challenges and compromising safety margins.

Recent examples have highlighted what can go wrong, particularly when it comes to the need for safe operating zones to mitigate downwash risks.

A downwash incident in March 2022, for example, involving a UK Coastguard search and rescue flight operated by a Bristow Helicopters S-92 landing at a HLS at Plymouth’s Derriford Hospital with a casualty, resulted in two people, not within the landing site, being blown over in an adjacent car park. They suffered serious injuries, and one subsequently died.

The investigation found that hospital management had failed to effectively assess the risks of landing site operation and communicating with the operator to ensure safe site use, with the HLS not operating in accordance with the latest guidance. Nine safety recommendations were made as a result, including that the UK Civil Aviation Authority include appropriate downwash guidance relevant to hospital HLS (HHLS) in one published document; that enhanced risk management guidance is developed for HHLS; that existing HHLS are reviewed against the latest guidance; and that a national HHLS database is developed and updated.

The repercussions continue, with Bristow suspending landings at 23 HHLS in Scotland in August following a risk assessment review of helicopter downwash and safeguards. A further 10 HHLS were assessed as safe. A safe zone of approximately 50-65 metres from the edge of the landing pad is required for heavy helicopters such as the S92, with the medium Leonardo AW189 having similar downwash characteristics.

Also in the UK, a GB£14 million helipad proposed for the Royal Sussex County Hospital has encountered countless delays, with the recent discovery that downwash could result in cladding being blown off the side of the hospital and windows blown out, requiring further structural work.

When it comes to downwash, the picture is less clear for eVTOLs and vertiports/ vertipads, with the performance criteria for eVTOLs largely unknown. A study on VTOL outwash and downwash recently released by David Ison, AAM Researcher at the Washington State Department of Transportation’s Aviation Division, suggests that existing US Federal Aviation Administration vertiport design criteria are insufficient as they lack minimum standards for downwash and outwash safety.

FirstCo: It’s vital to have a technology strategy for your vertiport. Image:FirstCo

To mitigate downwash risks, clear communication, proper training, and the establishment of safe operating zones are essential, says the study, which identifies the dangers of VTOL downwash and highlights potential mitigation strategies and basic safety guidelines. 

The study provides guidance on safety zones at vertiports and the surrounding environment and on establishing regulations and policies for VTOL operations to ensure public safety.

“Until more real-world data becomes available concerning eVTOL downwash and outwash, vertiport designers, regulators, and local planning entities need some sort of guidance on how to best protect persons and property on the ground,” says the study.

It’s not only downwash that causes issues.

The UK’s Luton and Dunstable Hospital’s long-running plan to install a helipad was halted after it was determined extensive strengthening work would be required for large parts of the hospital. In Kathmandu, helicopter pilots and operators recently raised concerns at the new Nalinchowk Heliport in Bhaktapur, which features 13 parking stands and four take-off/landing pads for simultaneous operations. Operators highlighted safety hazards, including high obstacles, such as a telecom tower and a tall building on the approach path, transmission wires and trees close to the helipad, calling for at least a one nautical mile radius to be cleared surrounding the heliport and the introduction of two-way approach and landing.

Once you have selected the perfect site for your heliport/vertiport following an extensive risk assessment, one practical consideration you need to work out is what it will be made of, with a number of choices available. Concrete and steel are making way for aluminium, which is proving increasingly popular due to its weight, properties and ease of maintenance.

When it comes to rooftop heliports, FEC Heliports claims to have designed, fabricated and installed more than anyone else in the world and believes it has the perfect system to support any rooftop application. Its HELISLAT aluminium structure provides the strength of concrete, but the low maintenance and high durability of aluminium, with the structure suitable for any building, it says.

If it’s a ground facility you are after, FEC offers the HELOMAT, which features aluminium panels that connect in a tongue- and-groove fashion, allowing it to be moved. According to FEC, HELOMAT can also be installed directly over a concrete pad, providing a new, low-maintenance surface to existing facilities. The company has also developed the Portapad, which is a short- term solution suitable for anything from special events to search and rescue, and easily assembled, disassembled and stored. FEC says it has expertise in all aspects of the process – from conducting a site survey and recommendations report to a complete engineering package and consulting services. “FEC can do as much or as little of the helipad design that best fits your project,” it says. “We will handle locating the pad to meet all of the clearance criteria, we’ll design the safest ingress and egress flight paths, we’ll assist with filing the proper paperwork, and we’ll design the support structure, making sure all of the required safety items, are included with your helipad design,” it adds. It can also recommend lighting, fire suppression and paint markings to meet regulatory requirements.

Base theory – Construction, lighting systems and integrated fire suppression for helidecks

Helidex Landing Systems, meanwhile, has installed more than 400 helidecks and helipads in more than 30 countries worldwide. Helidex says its solutions are lightweight due to the use of aluminium, providing structural integrity without overburdening the host building. Its helidecks and helipads offer easy maintenance, anti-skid surfacing, state-of-the-art lighting systems, integrated fire suppression systems, feature customisable dimensions, and meet international standards. Helidex can also provide all necessary secondary equipment – from fire suppression and lighting systems to helicopter refuelling and helideck monitoring systems.

Fire suppression is crucial. In a significant safety development, helipads can now incorporate deck-integrated firefighting systems, which disperse firefighting foam across the helideck from fixed nozzles in the aluminium structure.

Another essential operational requirement is lighting. It has to meet and keep up with changing regulations, withstand often harsh conditions, including weather and vibration, and be easy to maintain. LED technology has improved power consumption, while ongoing developments in control solutions, portable solutions, and automatisation are set to bring further benefits.

Bon Voyage: Before embarking on the development of a vertiport, it’s smart to call in an expert. Image: Joby

Just as with heliports, one size fits all is not expected to apply to vertiports. With this in mind, Australia-based vertiport developer Skyportz has developed a patented modular vertipad design, in addition to its larger-scale vertiport terminal designs in conjunction with Contreras Earl Architecture. The new vertipad design provides an entry-level solution that enables eVTOL operations at minimal cost and uses the smallest footprint possible. “You will be able to establish operations safely on tighter sites or on larger sites and fit more landing pads,” says Skyportz CEO Clem Newton-Brown, noting that profitable eVTOL operations are going to need low capital costs and high throughput.

Newton-Brown says the company has letters of intent from AAM operators, vertiport companies and property developers for in excess of 1,000 vertipads, with order deposits to be taken once prototype development and costings are complete. Details of the design are only being revealed under non-disclosure agreements, but Newton-Brown says it addresses issues crucial to successful AAM operations, including turbulence – amelioration of downwash and outwash; reduced property footprint requirements; noise reduction; firefighting; environmental impacts following firefighting; regenerative power capture; power storage; delivery of power source to aircraft; assisted blown lift technology to reduce energy draw from onboard battery; micro-wind data display and communication to aircraft; debris hazard collection; bird detect and deter; and insurance premium reductions. Skyportz is working with an industrial designer to make sure the vertipad can be transported and assembled easily and affordably.

“Our aim is to offer an off-the-shelf product that achieves these aims for all aircraft,” says Newton-Brown. “We aim to license the product to manufacturers in all regions to enable us to quickly supply the global market,” he adds. Skyportz is working with Australia’s Swinburne University on computational fluid dynamics modelling, with wind tunnel testing with a scale prototype planned early next year, and working with some eVTOL OEMs to maximise the design to match their aircraft configuration.

Specifications for success – Meeting vertiport design, safety, and certification guidelines

Authorities worldwide have released guidance on vertiport design, construction and maintenance, covering safety, noise issues, airspace integration, lighting and markings. The European Union Aviation Safety Agency and the US FAA were first to the table with design specifications in 2022, followed by countries including Australia, the UK and most recently India. All are designed to evolve as the sector grows, with much still unknown about AAM, including eVTOL vehicle performance data. All provide guidance on site selection, downwash protection, physical characteristics, obstacle limitation, and visual aids, while some detail emergency procedures, rescue and firefighting services, charging infrastructure, security and safety as well.

“We aim to license the product to manufacturers in all regions to enable us to quickly supply the global market.”

Clem Newton-Brown, CEO, Skyportz

Once your heliport – and vertiports in the future – is constructed based on approved designs, that is just the beginning, says Hijazi from Air Synapsis. “Certification hinges on operational readiness, which includes appointing personnel, conducting training, and publishing operational manuals and standard operating procedures,” he says. After a thorough site inspection and operational readiness review, authorities will issue the heliport certificate, with operators typically subject to ongoing risk-based monitoring to ensure compliance and safety performance.