Definition
Areas of land, water, or structures used or intended to be used for the landing and takeoff of helicopters, including associated buildings and facilities.
Plain English
Places built and approved for helicopters to land and take off, along with any nearby support buildings.
Context Anchor
Seen in instrument procedure discussions and charts when a route, approach, or departure is designed for helicopters instead of airplanes.
Derivation
From 'helicopter' combined with the ending '-port' (as in airport, seaport). The '-port' suffix comes from Latin portus, meaning a harbor or place of arrival and departure. So a heliport is simply the helicopter equivalent of an airport.
Why Pilots Care
Heliport procedures affect approach minima, lighting requirements, and obstacle clearance when flying IFR helicopter operations.
Intuition Check
A heliport is not just any open spot where a helicopter could land. In aviation use, it means a designated facility set up for helicopter operations.
Example Sentence 1
The hospital's rooftop heliport allows medical helicopters to deliver patients directly to the emergency department.
Example Sentence 2
Heliports at hospitals often have dedicated instrument procedures and restricted airspace surrounding them.