Helicopter Noise

I just read the press release saying that the 677,000 people had over 1400 forums and workshops to chose from. That's a great accomplishment. An even greater accomplishment was how the sightseeing helicopters managed to fly low over each of the events at least once, and in the cases of the forums I attended several times.

How about they fly closer to the spectator line, or a little higher? I saw a photo of a forum where the presenter was talking away and everyone had their fingers in their ears. Oh wait, that was the F-22. Not much can be done to quiet that down, but the helo noise could be reduced.

Vince Homer

I think a more practical solution is for them to upgrade the sound systems in the forums and have a tech guy on standby to assist presenters who might not be as savvy with system. Airport noise is always going to be pervasive (Helos, Tri-motors, T-6s, etc), so I'm not sure adjusting the Bell's routing is going to make much difference in and of itself. Buit even then there's going to be times when presenters are going to need to take a pause -- short of fully enclosing the forums, I think it's just a fact of life we're going to have to live with.

Airspace is at a premium during the convention. Every bit of airspace is assigned to something or another. The helicopters operate in a very tight box that is carved out of all the other activities. There is no room to move the helicopter route without interfering with other operations at the convention. This is looked at every year as part of the review of all air operations. The forum buildings have helped, as compared to the tents they used to have for forums, and the helicopters do not fly directly over the forum plaza, but rather just slightly to the west. It's about the best that can be done under the circumstances.