Landing on private land.

[pall]

Forgive my ignorance, I am a fixed wing pilot but...

Can you legally land a Helicopter on private land? A friend of my wife was outraged when a pilot landed in a paddock alongside their land terrifying their horses.

[Squeaks]

Can you legally land a Helicopter on private land?

Yes.

more added to beat the 10 word minimum

[darrenphughes]

As the poster above so simply put it yes you can but usually depending where you are in the world there are aviation regulations, national & local laws that may prevent you from doing so. And then there's the issue of needing permission from the land owner.

[spinwing]

Mmmmmm ...

In Australia ... the answer generally is yes ...provided of course you have permission of the landowner or controlling authority and in accordance with the Civil Air Regulations .....

Which will somewhere contain the following or similarly worded caveat ....

"without causing a hazard to persons or property on the surface".

Thus if damage is done ...(even to livestock) beware the "legal slings and arrows of outrageous neighbours!" (appologies to Willy Shakespeare).

:ooh:

[Squeaks]

A friend of my wife was outraged when a pilot landed in a paddock alongside their land terrifying their horses.

And which poor helicopter pilot are we setting up for an unexpected writ with this little outburst? "Terrified their horses"? That's a third hand report, and open to any interpretation from "looked up and shook their heads" to "ran around the paddock for a minute". If there was any serious 'terrifying' then they'd be down at the knacker's yard by now, turned into Pal doggy dins after breaking their legs after running into the fence, and there wouldn't be inane questions on PPRuNe from a supposed licenced pilot who should know these things :rolleyes:

Forgive my ignorance, I am a fixed wing pilot but...

Forgive? No :=

[Special 25]

Calm down everyone !!! There seems to be a bit of 'closing ranks' and being fairly hostile on the subject. It is a straight forward question, and the answer is as per replies 2 & 3 above.

Yes, you can land pretty much anywhere, subject to land owners permission, but you are liable for any damage done. Any site can be used as a one-off landing site and when I say one off, I mean 'occasional'. If you want to use it as a regular helipad, there are some hurdles to get over.

In repect to your particular issue, I have found livestock to be rarely bothered by the noise of helicopters. Low level flying in the army has its obvious issues in that horses (and more vitally, riders on horseback) don't always hear you coming until the sudden onset of noise flying over head. In normal civil flying, landing at a remote site, you will orbit once or make a steady approach looking out for any obstacles and that steady build up of noise reduces any alarm from animals on the ground.

[Squeaks]

Special,

The query is from Lara, Victoria: CASA Regs apply, not CAA ;) Any resultant liability is a consequence of the Victorian State and Australian Federal legislation.

Yes, you can land on private property in Australia. Any legalities are best researched by the aggrieved party through the local, State, and Federal legislature, not an internet forum with guesses from around the world :p

I'd expect even a PPL Fixed Wing driver to have the smarts to know that, hence the wind-up alert :rolleyes:

[VH-XXX]

If there was damage sustained to the horse(s) such as running through a fence etc, then the a/c operator would be liable, including a fixed wing aircraft. This would fall under noise polution and aside from hot-air balloons there is no noise polution insurance available. Therefore, it's very much pilot beware.

I know of this after a prized deer ran through a fence and escaped when I legally overflew a property at 500ft agl. Bye bye spare cash.

If the horses are unhurt there is little that can be done other than a polite warning to the land owner perhaps.

[Bravo73]

vital actions,

The OP is from Australia. Your reference to UK CAA regulations will only help to confuse the issue.

[Agaricus bisporus]

There's no difference between landing a helo or a plank on "private land". (This would be a "private" aircraft, I suppose?). You just need land-owner's permission in UK, and adhere to the rules of the air.

The difficulty arises when you try to land a "private" aircraft on public land, ie government owned or military property. Bureaucracy really gets in the way then, even if it is an airfield. Try getting permission to land in a municipal park and see what I mean! Landing public aircraft on public land is much easier, but then that is where military aircraft normally operate from.

Every civil airfield is as much "private" land as your neighbour's paddock, isn't it? You need permission from the land-owner - or his proxy, perhaps in this case Heathrow Tower, to land there...No difference.

And from what I've seen in several years of landing in fields it is invariably the owners of the nags that get dangerously over-excited about helos landing nearby, rather than the far more placid horses themselves.

[Bronx]

Agaricus bisporus You just need land-owner's permission in UK

Are you sure about that?

Which law says so? :confused:

B.

[206Fan]

Sure the military have been doing it for years on end in northern ireland and im sure in most of the UK.. Thou farmers round here were constantly putting up new fences due to live stock busting through them from the aircraft setting down in the field!

But then again the military is a different issue!

[Pilot DAR]

Canada has regulations with respect to "built up areas". It would be wise to assure that other jursidiction's similar regulations are considered, if they exist...

Take-offs, Approaches and Landings within Built-up Areas of Cities and Towns
602.13 (1) Except if otherwise permitted under this section, section 603.66 (http://www.tc.gc.ca/CivilAviation/Regserv/Affairs/cars/PART6/603.htm#603_66) or Part VII (http://www.tc.gc.ca/CivilAviation/Regserv/Affairs/cars/PART7/menu.htm), no person shall conduct a take-off, approach or landing in an aircraft within a built-up area of a city or town, unless that take-off, approach or landing is conducted at an airport, heliport or a military aerodrome.
(amended 2007/06/30; previous version (http://www.tc.gc.ca/CivilAviation/Regserv/Affairs/cars/Part6/Version/602061.htm))
(2) A person may conduct a take-off or landing in an aircraft within a built-up area of a city or town at a place that is not located at an airport, heliport or a military aerodrome where
(amended 2007/06/30; previous version (http://www.tc.gc.ca/CivilAviation/Regserv/Affairs/cars/Part6/Version/602062.htm))
(a) the place is not set apart for the operation of aircraft;
(b) the flight is conducted without creating a hazard to persons or property on the surface; and
(c) the aircraft is operated
(i) for the purpose of a police operation that is conducted in the service of a police authority, or
(ii) for the purpose of saving human life.

[Jackboot]

We enjoy a level of freedom in the UK that is the envy of pilots in other countries.

For example, to land on a private site in France you need a 'Heli Surfaces Permit' - FOC on submission of a bizarre form - and written permission from the landowner on each and every occasion. I think there are further requirements too but as I have never used my Permit I would need to do a bit of homework before doing so.

All I would say guys is - lets do our bit to keep it the way it is in the UK.

Jack

[Jettiejock]

I had a local councillor mention to me that a neighbour had claimed that I flew over her paddock at 70 feet causing her horse to bolt, throwing her partner from the animal. But he decided not go to hospital for his injuries. She also had claimed that my flying had spooked he cows in the field near my strip and they were producing less milk. However, the day in question, her friend, another horse owner and rider, had been in the helicopter with me and had remarked how, as we flew over the field at 700 feet agl, her horses had neither noticed us or moved at all.

Subsequently, every flight I did I pointed out to my passengers how the horses and Cattle never seemed to notice or move as we flew over their fields. Except, this one day when I started making my comment and then the cows immediately scattered in the field. I then saw the cause - my complainant neighbour, who was the Hunt Mistress, was in the saddle chasing a fox with a pack of hounds and the Cattle were truly terrified. Such amazing integrity I thought.