H4/H7 Heliroutes

[H300]

I have flown the H4/H7 heliroutes many times over the years but I have never seen the 'official' rules for use of the heliroute system. Everything I know about these routes has been passed down from instructors I have flown with in the past (and the London Heliroute charts, of course).

Does anyone know where I can get hold of the offical heliroute rules?

[StevieTerrier]

Try the UK AIP (En-Route section I think) if you have access to a copy. Otherwise Pooley's Guide has a section all about it.
Happy reading!

[Helinut]

Its in the Aerodrome Section under London Heathrow:
Pages AD 2 - EGLL - 1 - 25 to 32

Even though all the "unofficial" flight guides contain a summary they do miss some of the information

[The Nr Fairy]

And the relevant pages in the AIP's AD section, for Heathrow can be found here (http://www.ais.org.uk/uk_aip/pdf/ad/302LL01.pdf), with the Helicopter Route chart here (http://www.ais.org.uk/uk_aip/pdf/ad/32LL0302.pdf).

[ChitChat]

Talking of Heliroutes, has anyone done the Paris Heliroutes?

How do they compare with London?
Are they more complicated?
Is there an online guide in English?

Thanks

[Whirlybird]

Chitchat,

I've done them. Though "done" might be an exaggeration; a group of us flew to Paris, and we flew through them to the Paris Heliport, and out by the same route.

They're not complicated; they follow the Seine for a lot of the route, much like following the Thames in London. You're at 1500 ft though, and can't descend until very close to the heliport, which makes landing interesting.

The thing I remember most is how nice ATC were when we got lost. My co-pilot and I were relatively low hours PPLs at the time, who'd never flown in France, so the CFI put the whole route on to the GPS for us, including the entry to the heli-routes. Or that's what he said he'd done anyway. We were approaching Paris, when we realised we didn't have the entry for the heli-routes on the GPS. I was navigating, and assured Ian I had it, it was that gap in the woods, then that loop in the Seine. Well, one gap in the woods and one loop in the river looks much like another, and it was when we realised we were approaching the Arc de Triomphe and not where we should be that I made one of my more memorable radio calls:

"Molyneau...er..I'm sorry but we're not where I just told you we were. In fact...I have no idea at all where we are".

They calmly gave us a squawk, identified us, and directed us back to the heli-lanes. I really can't see Heathrow being that laid back about it if you did the same thing in London.

Sorry, don't know about any on-line guide.

[t'aint natural]

A word of warning:
Last year, at a flying instructor refresher course, the former CAA legal enforcer Gordon Sharp was asked whether it was legal to fly the London heliroutes in a single-engined helicopter.
He sucked his teeth and said: "I don't know. There's been a lot of building since those heliroutes were established. It would all depend what the judge thought."
So there you have it. If you have a problem and fail to "alight clear" (duh?) you're likely to be prosecuted and your fate would hinge on a roll of the dice in court.
Official heliroute rules I don't know. Official arse-covering and stable-door shutting procedures I can take a stab at.

[Helinut]

t'aint natural

The point you raise is interesting, but I think you have quoted the wrong bit of Rule 5. Land clear applies to planks, not helicopters.
For helicopters the requirement is to land without danger to persons or property on the ground.

In truth, the whole of the aviation legal framework in the UK is a set of booby traps for the unwary or the unlucky. It all starts with the first few words of various sections of the ANO: "An aircraft shall not fly..."

Why is it like that ? - why to prevent the merest possibility of the regulator being held responsiible for taking any decisions or anything else.

[Pub User]

The Specified Area.

The area within which "flights by single-engined helicopters" are "normally prohibited except along the river Thames"

I'm not a solicitor, but surely the above rule strongly implies that flights by single-engined helicopters are allowed anwhere outside the 'Specified Area", and along the Thames within it.

[t'aint natural]

Pub User: Not so. No 'official' route, no specific ATC clearance absolves you from blame if you're found where you shouldn't be - ie sticking out of someone's roof in Morden. Heliroutes clearance removes the requirements of the 1500ft - 600 metres rule, but if something goes wrong you're up the Thames without a paddle.