# Helicopter airlines: what was the point? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [August 11, 2025, 10:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/helicopter-airlines-what-was-the-point/1021945 "2025-08-11T22:36:05Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Timz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Timz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Timz)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2025, 10:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/helicopter-airlines-what-was-the-point/1021945/1 "2025-08-11T22:36:05Z")
About 1968, a heliport opened next to the Ferry Building in San Francisco. Eleven nonstop S-61s each weekday to SFO, scheduled 7 minutes; if you were connecting to a flight east the helicopter fare was $3.75. > **[Negative: SFO Helicopter Airlines, San Francisco International Airport...](https://collection.sfomuseum.org/objects/1511947265/)** > > Negative: SFO Helicopter Airlines, San Francisco International Airport Heliport is an object and its permanent ID is 1511947265. > **[Negative: SFO Helicopter Airlines, San Francisco International Airport...](https://collection.sfomuseum.org/objects/1511947267/)** > > Negative: SFO Helicopter Airlines, San Francisco International Airport Heliport is an object and its permanent ID is 1511947267. > **[Negative: SFO Helicopter Airlines, San Francisco International Airport...](https://collection.sfomuseum.org/objects/1511947231/)** > > Negative: SFO Helicopter Airlines, San Francisco International Airport Heliport is an object and its permanent ID is 1511947231. > **[Negative: SFO Helicopter Airlines, San Francisco International Airport...](https://collection.sfomuseum.org/objects/1511947223/)** > > Negative: SFO Helicopter Airlines, San Francisco International Airport Heliport is an object and its permanent ID is 1511947223. Question is, once the novelty wore off, who would want to catch a helicopter at the Ferry Building instead of just driving to SFO? Did they think those office buildings were full of fedora-wearing executives who would love to stroll over, attache case in hand, ready to leave town in style? Guess you could probably check baggage at the heliport, which would be nice, but if you’ve got baggage, where are you bringing it from? If you’ve got a trunkload of baggage, wouldn’t you just as soon drive straight to the airport? Same question about Los Angeles and New York, tho it’s true, an airport-to-airport helicopter in NY could be handy. Dunno if you could check your baggage thru, domestic flight at LGA to international out of JFK. Sounds adventurous. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2025, 10:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/helicopter-airlines-what-was-the-point/1021945/2 "2025-08-11T22:38:19Z")
I’m thinking it’s for folks going the other way: Business travelers flying in to a hotel in the city near the office they’re visiting. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2025, 10:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/helicopter-airlines-what-was-the-point/1021945/3 "2025-08-11T22:50:40Z")
In Manhattan, one heliport _was_ on the roof of the [Pan Am Building (now the MetLIfe Building)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MetLife_Building). That’s adjacent to Grand Central Terminal and is in midtown Manhattan, so it would be convenient for many people, and provided a direct connection to the Pan Am Terminal at JFK. Others are on the [East Side of the island](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/East_34th_Street_Heliport) and the [West Side of the island](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/West_30th_Street_Heliport). ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Strangelove](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr.strangelove/32/6613_2.png) [@Dr.Strangelove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Strangelove)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2025, 11:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/helicopter-airlines-what-was-the-point/1021945/4 "2025-08-11T23:24:30Z")
> [@Timz](#): > > Did they think those office buildings were full of fedora-wearing executives who would love to stroll over, attache case in hand, ready to leave town in style? Why not? There was no TSA in those days. Catching a helicopter was no different than catching a bus, just faster (and more expensive). There are plenty of hotels and office buildings in range of the Ferry Building today, which was likely true back in 1968 as well. If you were well-heeled enough, why wouldn’t you take a helicopter rather than a bus or taxi? ---
**Author:** ![PastTense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pasttense/32/14550_2.png) [@PastTense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PastTense)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2025, 12:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/helicopter-airlines-what-was-the-point/1021945/5 "2025-08-12T00:06:23Z")
> [@Timz](#): > > if you were connecting to a flight east the helicopter fare was **$3.75**. This is an amazingly low price. ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Strangelove](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr.strangelove/32/6613_2.png) [@Dr.Strangelove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Strangelove)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2025, 12:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/helicopter-airlines-what-was-the-point/1021945/6 "2025-08-12T00:08:35Z")
$35 in today’s dollars. Which is still pretty cheap, but they probably had fairly low overhead at the time. ---
**Author:** ![Llama\_Llogophile](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@Llama\_Llogophile](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Llama_Llogophile)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2025, 12:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/helicopter-airlines-what-was-the-point/1021945/7 "2025-08-12T00:22:46Z")
It may be this was an idea that was too far ahead of it’s time, but could work in the future. With different technology, that is. In the northeast a helo-like service with futuristic scaled up drones would be great, if it could be made feasible. Driving from NYC to the Hamptons, or Long Island to the Catskills is a long, tedious drive. But in a helicopter or drone would be short and sweet. Let’s hope. Story time… I fly bizjets and my company once flew me and my first officer by helicopter to pick up an airplane. We were at Republic Airport on Long Island and scheduled to fly empty to Teterboro (just outside NYC) to pick up passengers for a trip to Florida. When we started up the jet’s avionics there was a problem and as we were troubleshooting I noticed one of our company’s turbine helicopters land nearby. Knowing we had another jet already at Teterboro I joked, “Hey, why don’t they just fly us over to get the other plane?” Goddam, if that’s exactly what happened. We determined our primary jet was grounded, but the trip going on time was important enough to the company that they decided to eat the cost of the helo. To our amazement, we found ourselves quickly tossing our stuff in the helicopter, they started up and flew us to Teterboro, passing directly over LaGuardia Airport on the way. Fifteen minutes, and they even taxied right up to our airplane - it was really rock star stuff! The same drive would have taken perhaps two hours in traffic. So, helicopters for the win when traversing the NY airspace! Afterwards, I teased some of my airline friends: “What, your crappy company doesn’t helicopter you to your aircraft?” ---
**Author:** ![Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/13edae/32.png) [@Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stranger_On_A_Train)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2025, 12:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/helicopter-airlines-what-was-the-point/1021945/8 "2025-08-12T00:31:19Z")
> [@Llama\_Llogophile](#): > > In the northeast a helo-like service with futuristic scaled up drones would be great, if it could be made feasible. Driving from NYC to the Hamptons, or Long Island to the Catskills is a long, tedious drive. But in a helicopter or drone would be short and sweet. Let’s hope. I think it is an unlikely future for a number of reasons but the convenience factor of being able to commute by air, avoiding traffic, even at helicopter speeds, is pretty appealing if it could be done in sufficient volume and an affordable price point. It is basically the dream of the ‘flying car’ except without the highly problematic elements of the volume of air traffic and constant overhead noise that would create. Stranger ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Strangelove](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr.strangelove/32/6613_2.png) [@Dr.Strangelove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Strangelove)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2025, 12:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/helicopter-airlines-what-was-the-point/1021945/9 "2025-08-12T00:32:04Z")
Archer Aviation intends to offer air taxi service to Bay Area airports with an electric VTOL craft in the near future. They’ve made some concrete progress, and have a working vehicle, and a few other things. Last I checked they wanted to launch sometime this year, but that seems unlikely at this point. The basic idea isn’t insane, given the amount of wealth here and the traffic situation. Whether they can make it work out in practice is a different question. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2025, 12:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/helicopter-airlines-what-was-the-point/1021945/10 "2025-08-12T00:53:31Z")
> [@Llama\_Llogophile](#): > > Driving from NYC to the Hamptons, or Long Island to the Catskills is a long, tedious drive. I think there already are helicopter taxis to the Hamptons. It helps that some extremely wealthy people want to get there for the weekend. ---
**Author:** ![Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/q.q.switcheroo/32/5713_2.png) [@Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.Q.Switcheroo)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2025, 2:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/helicopter-airlines-what-was-the-point/1021945/11 "2025-08-12T02:26:35Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > I think there already are helicopter taxis to the Hamptons. It helps that some extremely wealthy people want to get there for the weekend. As featured on _Broad City_: ILANA: Whoa, a helicopter? I thought Uber just had cars! RICH LADY: Uber has cars?! ---
**Author:** ![mnemosyne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c4cdca/32.png) [@mnemosyne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mnemosyne)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2025, 2:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/helicopter-airlines-what-was-the-point/1021945/12 "2025-08-12T02:43:52Z")
Wisk, Joby, Lilium (currently not being funded), Supernal, Beta, Textron eViation, volocopter, vertical aerospace, lift…. The eVtol space has plenty of players, no clear winners yet. It’s a tricky area of certification because most of the energy technology is novel and the proposed operations in cities pose risks that are different than traditional aviation. ---
**Author:** ![garygnu](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/garygnu/32/2924_2.png) [@garygnu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/garygnu)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2025, 4:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/helicopter-airlines-what-was-the-point/1021945/13 "2025-08-12T04:02:22Z")
> [@Timz](#): > > Question is, once the novelty wore off, who would want to catch a helicopter at the Ferry Building instead of just driving to SFO? Do you realize how far away SFO is from the City? ---
**Author:** ![Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/13edae/32.png) [@Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stranger_On_A_Train)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2025, 4:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/helicopter-airlines-what-was-the-point/1021945/14 "2025-08-12T04:23:15Z")
> [@garygnu](#): > > Do you realize how far away SFO is from the City? It’s basically [30 minutes without traffic](https://www.google.com/maps/dir/San+Francisco+International+Airport,+San+Francisco,+CA+94128/Ferry+Building,+1+Ferry+Building,+San+Francisco,+CA+94105/@37.7266106,-122.4550749,11.81z/data=!3m1!5s0x80858066b5ce8885:0x6466737455f48376!4m14!4m13!1m5!1m1!1s0x808f778c55555555:0xa4f25c571acded3f!2m2!1d-122.3816274!2d37.6191145!1m5!1m1!1s0x808580668e8f3159:0x6cf7a313d6a53ec7!2m2!1d-122.3936136!2d37.7954425!3e0?entry=ttu&g_ep=EgoyMDI1MDgwNi4wIKXMDSoASAFQAw%3D%3D). Stranger ---
**Author:** ![garygnu](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/garygnu/32/2924_2.png) [@garygnu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/garygnu)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2025, 4:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/helicopter-airlines-what-was-the-point/1021945/15 "2025-08-12T04:42:36Z")
“Without” traffic, LoL. ---
**Author:** ![Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/13edae/32.png) [@Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stranger_On_A_Train)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2025, 4:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/helicopter-airlines-what-was-the-point/1021945/16 "2025-08-12T04:59:59Z")
Yeah, with traffic (basically any time between 6:30 am and 7:00 pm) you can count on a 4X or more penalty. If going into downtown from SFO I just take the BART because I’ll spend twice the time sitting in traffic even without getting a rental car and searching for parking (or paying more than the cost of a hotel room for it). A ten minute heli ride would be a bargain at $100. Stranger ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Strangelove](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr.strangelove/32/6613_2.png) [@Dr.Strangelove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Strangelove)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2025, 5:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/helicopter-airlines-what-was-the-point/1021945/17 "2025-08-12T05:02:55Z")
> [@mnemosyne](#): > > The eVtol space has plenty of players, no clear winners yet. I’m not sure the race has even properly started yet. Does anyone even have a type certificate yet? Feels like we won’t really have an idea about long-term success until at least two are flying normal, passenger routes with full certification. Then maybe we’ll have an idea about the various tradeoffs they made with regards to speed, passenger count, aircraft cost, etc. ---
**Author:** ![Melbourne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b5e925/32.png) [@Melbourne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Melbourne)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2025, 5:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/helicopter-airlines-what-was-the-point/1021945/18 "2025-08-12T05:57:53Z")
> [@Timz](#): > > Did they think those office buildings were full of fedora-wearing executives who would love to stroll over, attache case in hand, ready to leave town in style? Gosh no. In NYC the Twin Towers had their own heliport: who would want to go downstairs to catch a scheduled service? ---
**Author:** ![Mk\_VII](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Mk\_VII](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mk_VII)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2025, 7:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/helicopter-airlines-what-was-the-point/1021945/19 "2025-08-12T07:28:22Z")
In the movie Coogan’s Bluff, Eastwood ‘s character arrives at a NY heliport. ---
**Author:** ![Moonrise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/moonrise/32/14764_2.png) [@Moonrise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moonrise)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2025, 7:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/helicopter-airlines-what-was-the-point/1021945/20 "2025-08-12T07:46:02Z")
> [@PastTense](#): > > This is an amazingly low price. My thought, exactly. Even adjusted. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/helicopter-airlines-what-was-the-point/1021945.md?page=2)