Commercial Helicopter Operations on Yachts

The regulatory position changes materially once helicopter flights move beyond purely private use. Commercial helicopter operations on yachts are treated as commercial air transport, with requirements that go well beyond those for an owner flying family and friends.

The distinction often turns on how flights are offered rather than who is on board. Inviting guests to use the helicopter as part of the owner’s private enjoyment of the yacht is private use. Including helicopter transfers in charter marketing, charter agreements or pricing will generally move the operation into commercial territory.

When helicopter flights become commercial

• Passengers pay for helicopter flights
• Flights are bundled into charter arrangements
• Helicopter use forms part of the yacht’s charter offering
• The helicopter is otherwise used for hire or reward

Indirect payment, cost-sharing arrangements or offering helicopter access as part of a wider charter experience can each be enough to change the character of the operation.

What changes

Once the flights fall within commercial air transport, additional regulatory requirements are triggered. These typically cover how the aircraft and its pilots are approved to operate, and the inspection and certification of the helideck for commercial use through the flag state, Class and an approved aviation inspection body.

Review it with the charter structure

Where there is any intention to charter the yacht, or to offer helicopter access to paying charter guests, the helicopter operations should be reviewed alongside the yacht’s charter structure. Relatively small changes in how flights are offered or documented can have a disproportionate regulatory impact, so we recommend discussing any proposed commercial use in advance. We review charter agreements, marketing material and pricing so that the helicopter offer matches what the yacht and aircraft are approved to do.