05-11-2013, 07:53 PM
MarkP - thanks for the response. I wasn't thinking about minimum altitudes etc. I was thinking why don't helicopters fly higher than they do when the sky is clear. At 3000 feet the noise would be so much less than 1500 feet yet on clear days I have helicopters fly over at altitudes which are clearly less than 3000 feet. Not all days, I grant you, but am wondering why a 3000 ft altitude over land might not be a better option or at least a compromise at least when conditions allow it.
Obviously weather comes into this and am only really talking about the tours rather than coast guard operations. I suspect fuel costs might come into this as well, but is there really a problem flying higher over subdivisions compared to current practice?
sputnut - if you have followed recent news a helicopter came down in Honolulu a couple of days ago and no-one was killed, so no, it's not a death sentence.
Tom
http://apacificview.blogspot.com/
Obviously weather comes into this and am only really talking about the tours rather than coast guard operations. I suspect fuel costs might come into this as well, but is there really a problem flying higher over subdivisions compared to current practice?
sputnut - if you have followed recent news a helicopter came down in Honolulu a couple of days ago and no-one was killed, so no, it's not a death sentence.
Tom
http://apacificview.blogspot.com/