Do Helicopters Need Flight Plans?

If you are interested in becoming a flight dispatcher, you will need to be familiar with some of the laws and regulations surrounding other types of aircraft. People who choose this profession will likely have to deal with airplanes, drones, and even helicopters. Becoming a well-rounded dispatcher requires that students learn what dealing with additional kinds of aircraft needs to have in their flight plans and various other regulations. This includes helicopters since these are becoming a more popular form of transportation. Do helicopters file flight plans? Sheffield School of Aeronautics, an experienced airline dispatcher school, explores further in the following article. 

Do Helicopters Need Flight Plans? 

If you plan on being a dispatcher in the United States, you should realize you are bound to the regulations imposed by the Federal Aviation Authority (FAA). The FAA creates regulations for both fixed and rotary-wing aircraft. In other words, airplanes and helicopters must abide by the same regulations. Because of these regulations, helicopter pilots need to review the type of flight they plan to take to see if they need to file a flight plan.

Per FAA rules, it is not necessary to file a flight plan if the flight will be using visual flight rules instead of instrument flight rules. Since the majority of helicopter flights use visual flight rules, anyone following these types of rules when in flight will not need to file flight plans. Visual flight rules apply to most small aircraft. In this kind of flight planning, pilots use visual landmarks and the aircraft’s relative position to navigate and safely land the plane or helicopter.

While it is not required to file a flight plan for these types of flights, it is still recommended that pilots do so to ensure that air traffic dispatchers and controllers understand how many and which kinds of aircraft are in the air at any given time. In order to use a visual flight plan, the weather must be clear enough to see three miles in every direction. Lastly, visual flight requirements state that a flight undergoing rules of this type cannot fly over 18,000 feet. 

Helicopter Flight Plan Requirements 

When do helicopters file flight plans? As stated above, for a helicopter flight plan to be required, they will need to fly at an altitude above 18,000 feet. This altitude is generally too high for helicopters because their maximum operating altitude is generally much lower than airplanes. The higher an aircraft is during flight, the thinner the air will be, making it much more difficult and even impossible to fly a helicopter. For this reason, helicopter pilots generally fly well below the maximum altitude needed to use a visual flight plan because it would be too dangerous to fly any higher.

However, if the weather is not clear enough to use a visual flight plan, they will need to use an instrumental flight plan since the requirements for using a visual flight plan include having clear weather and visibility. Due to the added danger bad weather provides, most helicopters do not operate in weather conditions that are not nearly perfect. This means instrumental flight plans are not much of a consideration. 

Lastly, in order for a helicopter to be required to use a flight plan, the helicopter will need to fly within sixty nautical miles of Washington, D.C. A helicopter that does not file a flight plan when they are this close to the nation’s capital runs the risk of getting pursued by the Air Force and possibly spending time in federal prison. 

Do You Need Permission to Fly a Helicopter? 

To fly a helicopter recreationally, you will need a private pilot’s license. However, if you plan to make a career or earn money flying helicopters, it will be necessary for you to get a commercial pilot license.

Do Helicopters Have to File Flight Plans in Rescue Missions?

In many cases, helicopters are not required to file formal flight plans for routine operations, especially in less congested airspace or during short-distance flights. However, flight plans may be necessary when flying through controlled airspace, across international borders, or for specific missions such as air ambulance operations. Filing flight plans can enhance safety. Even when they are not mandatory, they help by providing a record of intended routes and destinations in addition to aiding search and rescue efforts in emergencies. In rescue missions, especially those conducted by professional search and rescue (SAR) teams or emergency services, helicopters often file flight plans or itineraries. Filing a flight plan helps ensure effective coordination and communication between the rescue team and relevant authorities. 

When Do Helicopters Have to File a Flight Plan? 

Helicopters have to file a flight plan with aviation dispatchers when they are going to be using visual flight rules. Visual flight rules, or VFRs, are a set of regulations under which a pilot operates an aircraft in weather conditions generally clear enough to allow visual reference to the ground. Pilots primarily rely on visual cues, such as landmarks and the horizon, in VFR conditions to navigate and maintain safe separation from other aircraft. The only condition in which helicopters have to file flight plans is when there is no visibility since pilots cannot use visual cues like the horizon, ground features, and other landmarks. 

Is It Illegal to Not File a Flight Plan? 

As a general answer, flights at altitudes at and above 18,000 feet (5.49 km) above mean sea level require flight plans. Nevertheless, for flights at lower altitudes in both controlled and uncontrolled airspace, the need for a flight plan is not mandatory across most of the airspace in the United States. This allows for recreational or non-commercial flying activities, commonly referred to as “joyriding” or “offroading.” It’s important to note that specific Federal Aviation Regulations (FARs), such as minimum altitude requirements and adherence to appropriate altitudes based on your flight direction, may still be applicable in these situations. You can learn more about these requirements in our flight dispatcher courses and flight dispatcher training classes.

More About Sheffield School of Aeronautics

Sheffield School of Aeronautics is one of the most specialized and experienced aircraft dispatching schools in the United States. If you plan on working in the aviation industry as a helicopter dispatcher, helicopter flight planner, or FAA dispatcher, we are the school for you. Contact our flight dispatcher school to learn more about international flight planning and our other flight dispatcher courses.