COPTER Instrument Flight Procedures for Heliports & Vertiports: What Is the Process?

Rotor Safety Challenge (RSC)
Tracks: Safety; Pilot; Operations
Instructor: Chris Baur

In this interactive session, participants will navigate through development, implementation, and commissioning of instrument flight procedures (IFPs) and the four areas of required instrument procedure maintenance. We will explore the certification of a heliport/vertiport for COPTER IFR procedures and examine requirements and mitigations to facilitate dependable all-weather day/night operations with an improved level of safety. We will discuss the benefits of vertically and nonvertically guided approaches; the differences; and the benefits of COPTER localizer performance with vertical guidance (LPV), localizer performance without vertical guidance (LP), and lateral navigation (LNAV); as well as proceed visually and proceed VFR procedures. We will also introduce advanced required navigation performance (A-RNP) and trajectory-based radio frequency (RF) flight segments, as well as take as a closer look at off-heliport obstacles, categorizations, airspace engineering, and the environmental process. We will explain heliport surveys, flight inspection activities, and value-added options such as COPTER ZK low-level routes and use of weather cameras.

Instructor Bio

Chris Baur is the president and CEO of Hughes Aerospace Corporation, one of the largest and most experienced globally credentialed Air Navigation Service Providers. Under Chris’s leadership, Hughes has been at the forefront of the FAA’s NextGen implementation and worldwide performance-based navigation (PBN) movement. Chris possesses 40 years of diverse contributions in aviation. He is an experienced airline captain, technical pilot, instructor, and flight test pilot.