Handysnaks,
I'm sure in the flesh you're a really nice guy. But this forum, which you are welcome to be a member of, is for people who are traditionally pro-heli.
No, we don't all go around thinking, or expecting, that because some of us fly them, or own them, that we have a god given right to land them where we like, but we do like to think that most people here are heli friendly.
You just don't seem to be. (at least on this topic) .
Correct, in the flesh I am an exceptionally nice guy!
(as long as you ignore the actual flesh)
Partially disagreeing with your opinion on the NEC does not make me helicopter-unfriendly!
Handysnaks
Quote:
When a place like the NEC has a location which is deliberately close to a major airport, the assumption is that that is where the aircraft (of any type), will land
I think it's an unfair assumption. Are you suggesting that when I fly down to Celtic Manor to watch the Ryder Cup in a couple of weeks (a major event with 000's of visitors and next to an international airport), I should land at EGTG instead of its helipad (albeit £150 landing fee for non-residents )?
Ttb, An interesting leap of logic, If Celtic Manor has a helipad and if you are willing to pay the landing fees (or if they let you land there gratis), I would suggest that you land at Celtic Manor, it's where you want to go. Why would you want to land at an airport miles away?
It would appear that the NEC doesn't have a helipad. They do however have a major international airport next door. So if you want to fly to the NEC I suggest that you land at the airport and get a taxi.
Those two options are not mutually exclusive.
The NEC has plenty of space for [at least] one helipad. As Shytorque said, if senior mgt of the NEC can't sort it out, I suspect there are other reasons that we don't know about but, as far as I can see, there is no obvious commercial, environmental or risk issue that would prevent helis landing adjacent to the NEC.
My very point, (in defending the NEC that is). Maybe it's because they can't get planning permission, or don't want to risk upsetting the locals by asking for planning permission. It isn't necessarily because they are an bunch of anti-helicopter backward looking luddites!
Joel
So for those that are in the wrong place (and I know I'm not). The Rotorheads forum is usually for those people who like everything helicopter and would like to use them for what they were designed for, namely, landing the fking thing right outside the front door. Not unreasonable considering its a HELICOPTER!!
I don't consider myself anti-helicopter, but we (as B73 has outed me
) operators of helicopters have to do so in a real world, populated occasionally by enthusiasts like ourselves, sometimes by those who are indifferent and also by others who resent the environmental intrusion that our activities bring!
Now if you want to land your helicopter outside 'the front door' that may not be unreasonable to you but depending on where that front door is, it may be unreasonable to one or more others! Taking the views of non-helicopter lovers into consideration is hardly anti-helicopter! Ignoring their views is certainly not pro-helicopter!
The helicopter industry as a whole, is more than just you (I don't mean that disparagingly by the way). Operating helicopters in today’s political, industrial, environmental and equally important, social climate involves an awful lot of compromise. Just take a look at the efforts the major users of Battersea go through to keep the local population on board with continued operations at the heliport there! Sometimes we can use the helicopter exactly as we wish and sometimes we can't.
By the way, I don't want to land at the NEC either!