Uniquely capable, helicopters bring unprecedented reach and time-saving possibilities to superyacht operations, Paul Eden discovers.
When it comes to moving guests between land and vessel, the fastest and most exciting means is usually by helicopter. But it is capable of so much more than passenger transfers. It’s currently unique in its ability to take off vertically, travel long distances quickly and land in a small area.
With the yacht a moving base with a helipad, the helicopter is a bit of a time machine. It goes far in land, landing perhaps in several locations in the same day and, as such, extracts the most from that precious commodity — time.
Successfully operating a helicopter from a yacht helipad or heliport requires careful planning and a lot of important decisions. Choosing a suitable helicopter is critical and building its requirements into a new yacht project yields more satisfactory results than retrofitting a helipad.
Which yacht?
There is generally a correlation between vessel length and compatible helicopter size. Longer yachts typically have wider beams, allowing for larger helipad areas, although Tim Langmead at Fraser Yachts predicts that with the growing popularity of catamaran designs, more shorter boats could offer helipad space in future.
“Helipads typically appear on yachts above 164ft and more commonly 197ft, although we have seen them on 115ft boats,” he continues. Most yachts 197ft and up have some sort of landing area for a helicopter, he says, although the heavily regulated certified helipads, with fueling facilities and hangars, are usually only found on yachts above 262ft.
The critical dimension here is the helicopter’s D-value — a measure of its length with rotors turning — while its weight is another fundamental consideration. There is also the question of whether a helipad is certified or not. Rory Boyle, partner and naval architect at Burgess, explains: “A non-certified deck is generally an area designated as a space on which a helicopter can land entirely at the discretion of the pilot and helicopter-owning company.
"The deck must be sufficiently strengthened to take crash loads of the specified helicopter. The point loads from its wheels or skids should also be known, but essentially, this is equivalent to a pilot landing in a garden, where no specific zone is outlined, and they can clearly see that the space is workable. A helicopter can be stowed on a deck of this type only if the yacht is entirely privately owned and sufficient lashing points are present. These decks cannot be used in poor weather conditions or the dark. If a yacht is used commercially, the deck should be certified to an industry standard.”
Jonathan Turner, managing director at Maritime Aviation, says specialist help is required to ensure safe helicopter operations from yachts, but is not always sought. “It should be clear that a helicopter is not just another tender and needs to be considered appropriately.” He continues: “Hazard mitigation, specialist equipment, safety management and training are all required. Incompatibility between the helicopter type and the shipboard heliport is a common issue. The perception that any helicopter can land on any yacht with some space is far from the truth.
The issue manifests in the often misunderstood difference between certified and non-certified shipboard heliports. Certified heliports must meet a set of regulatory standards published by organisations, including the International Civil Aviation Organization, or flag states. Where this is not possible, a heliport will not be certified and should not operate commercial (charter) helicopters.”
Training & Safety
Charlotte Pedersen at Pegasus Consilium emphasises the importance of helicopter and yacht crew training for safe operations. “Many regulatory organisations don’t have specific rules for yacht operations but do cover commercial offshore operations,” Pedersen says. “Unfortunately, though, some companies flying to yachts don’t have approval for offshore commercial operations.”
Maritime Aviation’s Jonathan Turner believes training requirements should be embedded within the wider safety function. “All shipboard heliports should follow an iterative safety management process, managed by suitably qualified and experienced professionals. Incorporating aviation safety audits, the identification of aviation hazards and the creation (and regular update) of a dedicated Shipboard Heliport Operations Manual, which should be bespoke to each vessel and part of its safety management system. This defines crew responsibilities and details standard and emergency operating procedures (SOPs and EOPs),” Turner says.
“An appropriate training provider should train the crew to carry out SOPs and EOPs. The main heliport crew training standard in the superyacht industry is published by the UK MCA. Updated in 2024, its training syllabus details the criteria for MCA-accredited Helicopter Landing Officers (HLOs), Helideck Assistants (HDAs) and Heliport Rescue Firefighters (HRFs).”
While it may be possible to find commercial helicopter operators willing to use an uncertified helipad, Turner says it is tricky for many reasons. “Insurers are now taking a very active interest in how helicopters interact with aviation-capable superyachts, especially to non-certified shipboard heliports,” he says. “Insurance is a complex issue since both the vessel and helicopter will have their own insurance, and operations not meeting the underwriters’ requirements can lead to the operation not being covered.”
Regardless of regulations, retrofitted helipads, often the unregulated kind, are always a compromise. Deciding which type or types of helicopters will fly from a vessel and building that capability into it yields by far the best results from engineering, safety and aesthetic standpoints.
“The dimensions, operational profiles and helicopter D-value should be defined early in the design, while obstacle-free zones, and masts or other features that could cause turbulence should be designed with commercial deck use in mind,” Boyle says. “Significant additional loads must be engineered to accommodate large helicopters, and these can have an exponential impact on the amount of structure required down through the vessel.”
Charlotte Pedersen, an experienced pilot and founder of Pegasus Consilium, a helicopter and yacht consultancy, adds: “While investment into a yacht is high, lots of owners try to save money on the helicopter and operator, not realising that this part of the operation can involve the highest risk.
Landing on a small, moving deck with turbulence from vessel structures requires the right type of helicopter, a knowledgeable company and qualified pilots and crew. My advice is always to contact a professional helicopter company. I connect lots of yacht owners with the right helicopter operator for them.”
Which helicopter?
Among the leading helicopter brands, Agusta, Airbus Corporate Helicopters (ACH) and Bell are the primary providers for yachting. Among the largest helicopters flying from yachts, the ACH175 is classified as a super-medium helicopter. Falling into the seven-tonne class, it seats up to 12 passengers depending on cabin layout. Typically equipped for a maximum of eight passengers, the ACH160 is an exciting new medium helicopter offering the very latest cockpit and cabin technologies.
The most popular ACH models, the ACH145 and ACH135, are considered light twins and especially suited to yacht operations. Lightest of the ACH range, the single-engined ACH125 and ACH130 are compact, comfortable aircraft, while the powerful ACH125 is the premier choice for high-altitude landings. If mountain exploration or heliskiing are on the itinerary, the ACH125 is the only choice.
Other popular helicopters include the AW109 GrandNew and Trekker, in roughly the same class as the ACH145, the larger AW169 and larger still AW139, all available as luxury models from Agusta, the new high-end brand from Leonardo. The company also offers the single-engine AW119Kx and its upcoming AW09 will seat up to eight passengers.
Bell satisfies the single-engine market with its Model 505 and Model 407GXi. It also has the Model 429 twin, a machine valued by corporate and VIP operators for its speed and smooth ride.
An interesting new market entrant, the Hill Helicopters HX50 promises to deliver luxury at a lower price point than similar single-engine helicopters. Hill Helicopters sales and marketing ambassador Mischa Gelb, says: “The HX50’s fuel efficiency and longer-range capabilities ensure it can easily handle trips to and from remote locations, perfect for yacht owners looking to explore further afield. Its compact dimensions also make it suitable for landing on yacht helipads.” HX50 deliveries are expected from late 2027.
Unusually, the HX50 offers fixed skids rather than wheels, an option that highlights a fundamental helicopter purchasing decision: wheels or skids? A wheeled undercarriage is usually retractable, reducing drag for a faster cruising speed and fuel savings, but restricts potential landing sites to firmer, relatively level ground. Skids, especially high skids, provide considerably more landing options, but at the expense of drag and less straightforward ground handling.
Sustainability ought to be another key concern for all helicopter users and here there is good news. Digital engine control technologies optimise engine performance for reduced fuel consumption, while every new engine iteration is more efficient than the last. Since all the helicopters featured here are turbine powered, they are also compatible with sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), up to the currently certified blend of 50 percent with fossil jet fuel.
Unfortunately, SAF is often difficult to find, but there are ways around the problem. Davide Paladino is senior VP of sales at on-demand private aircraft for Victor, an aircraft charter platform. Fraser Yachts is part of Victor’s Alto loyalty program and Paladino explains how Victor provides access to SAF: “Our ‘pay here, use there’ model enables customers to voluntarily purchase Neste SAF. When the customer books, they can choose how much SAF they’d like to buy. We notify Neste, which then delivers SAF from its refinery to Helsinki airport, where it is used on a commercial flight.”
Experience
Embarked helicopters open a world of experiences. Nick Davies, managing director at Cookson Adventures, says: “For us, using the helicopter to get clients on and off the yacht is the starting point. The yacht is the platform for adventure and the helicopter provides an opportunity for seeing more along the coast and projecting inland.
“It means you can do a lot more in the available time too. A few years ago, we flew some customers up into the Andes, where we’d pre-positioned horses. They went riding, then helicoptered back to the yacht. Next day, they were puma tracking with a conservation organisation we flew out to, and so on. Without the helicopter, it would have required hours of driving or days of walking.”
Jimmy Carroll, co-founder and business development director at Pelorus Travel, echoes Davies’ thoughts. “We want to make the most of the client’s time and ensure that everything they do is an experience. Helicopters allow us almost to buy time back, while providing an experience in their own right.”
Acknowledging that some are nervous about helicopters, Carroll illustrates the acceptance that comes with experience. Referencing a recent trip where three participants had not flown in helicopters before, “We did a day of helicoptering and saw incredible landscapes that would have taken days by road. The landscape was constantly changing, and seeing it from the helicopter was an incredible experience.
“It’s very rare for people not to like helicopters once they’ve tried them,” he says. “At the final meal on that trip, the clients were saying, ‘If we took a helicopter, we could go over there, reach that, do this.’ They’d caught the helicopter bug.”
First published in the October 2024 issue of BOAT International US Edition. Get this magazine sent straight to your door, or subscribe and never miss an issue.