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I think the problem is air traffic control, not so much flying taxis?

• Someone 7y ago
  Most helicopters fly without air traffic control, under visual flight rules. https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2019/10/new-york-city-helicopter-problem.html https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2019/10/new-york-city-helico...: ”One might imagine that the Federal Aviation Administration is fully in charge of Manhattan’s crowded airspace. But the agency isn’t even aware how many helicopters hover over the city on a daily basis. The FAA doesn’t generally monitor chopper traffic, which operates under Visual Flight Rules (VFR): Unless pilots approach an airport, they’re required to communicate only with other pilots in nearby crafts, and not with air traffic control. This means that depending on where a given pilot is, they may not have to speak with anybody at all.” Presumably, these would, too (until too many accidents occur)
  • redis_mlc 7y ago
    > Most helicopters fly without air traffic control, under visual flight rules. So that's a strangely-worded statement. Let me unpack it ... Almost all helicopters are not IFR-equipped or operated under IFR (including EMS), so they must fly under visual meteorological conditions using VFR rules. And although they can fly without ATC facilities in some airspace, usually they use ATC for takeoff and landings to airports, and arrivals and departures to airports, and for position reports. So what you meant to say was, "Almost all helicopters fly under VMC conditions using VFR rules, and communicate with ATC except when they are in an airspace where they're not required to. But they do broadcast Mode-C and ADS-B at all times in airspace that requires it, which goes to ATC: https://www.rotor.org/resource?ArtMID=493&ArticleID=1061 https://www.rotor.org/resource?ArtMID=493&ArticleID=1061