The Netherlands has a few Eurocopter EC135s for air medical services. (See Wikipedia.) How much clear landing space is required (either theoretically, practically or regulatory) for these?
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3$\begingroup$ According to my experience on Flight Simulator X, roughly an area the size of a medium sized town - but I suspect I'm not the most talented helicopter pilot. $\endgroup$– Jon StoryApr 12, 2016 at 11:53
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2 Answers
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Theoretically the diameter of the rotor plus some room for the tail is sufficient. If it fits, it fits.
Practically, a bit of room for manoeuvring is required. Also special attention to the generated turbulence is needed in cramped spaces.
Regulatory I don't know the exact size required for the EC135 operated as air ambulance in the Netherlands. But I do know that the Dutch police helicopters are allowed to land on an area with a diameter of 1.5 $\times$ LOA (length over all) during daytime operations. They hit a lamp mast once which resulted in this investigation (in Dutch - or English text-only translation) by the Onderzoeksraad (Dutch Safety Board). Page 5 and 6 show some of the regulations in force at the time (2008).
answered Apr 17, 2014 at 23:09
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I don't think there's a hard and fast rule for this, but it depends on a number of factors:
- Wind/ Weather conditions requiring safety margins.
- Effect of nearby objects/structures. If they are big I think they might cause unpredictable wind effects, again requiring compensation and space.
(source: flugzeug-bild.de)
That said, I'm no helicopter pilot, so somebody else might be able to give a more detailed answer. YouTube is a pretty decent place to find some tight landings though.
answered Mar 11, 2014 at 19:51
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1$\begingroup$ From what little I understand about helicopter operations, that's basically the deal: You can land anywhere you can fit (the biggest consideration being not smacking the tail rotor into anything). Various helicopter-related sites offer rules of thumb on landing area size and other considerations (that PDF from CALSTAR recommends 100x100 feet, or about 30x30 meters) $\endgroup$– voretaq7Mar 12, 2014 at 21:50
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$\begingroup$ @voretaq7 that sounds pretty reasonable. $\endgroup$ Mar 12, 2014 at 22:20