THE BATTLE FOR WEST 30TH
Previous spread: Jeffrey Sherrills, a ramp agent for heliport operator Air Pegasus, hot-refuels a
Helicopters Inc. Bell 206L-4 as a pair of Sikorsky
S-76Cs coordinate
passenger transfers at the West 30th Street Heliport. (VAI/Dan Sweet)
S
A convergence of Sikorsky S-76C helicopters is a common sight at the heliport, which
can handle multiple aircraft at a time. A Zip Aviation model under contract to Blade waits for
charter passengers while a Flexjet
helicopter prepares for landing.
(VAI/Dan Sweet)
WIFT ACTION BY VERTICAL Aviation International (VAI) ear- lier this year thwarted the latest attempt to shut down the West 30th
Street Heliport (KJRA) in New York City. Buried inside proposed New York State legis-
lation to expand the green space associated with the redevelopment of Pier 76 in the 550-acre, 4.5 mile–long Hudson River Park was language that could have led to the closure of the heliport. Specifically, it prohibited “any facility for motor- ized aircraft, including a heliport.” VAI quickly mobilized its members to respond
in what Cade Clark, VAI chief government affairs officer, called the largest grassroots campaign in the association’s history. The VAI outreach included its members, affected companies throughout the Northeast, and other regional and national aviation organizations. In just three to four days, the coordinated
effort generated an impressive 96,000 emails to New York State legislators. According to VAI’s northeastern US regional representative, Josh Rousseau, the emails from the grassroots cam- paign “blew up” the inboxes of legislators.
Rousseau, who joined VAI last year after a
25-year career in New York State government, says the email campaign prompted former colleagues to seek him out in the hallways of the state capitol to ask about the heliport. Rousseau used the opportunity to open lines of communi- cation and educate lawmakers and their staffs about the importance of KJRA. “We now have a seat at the table,” he says.
Serving New York since the 1950s The West 30th Street Heliport is a thriving facility for air taxi and general aviation helicopter oper- ations, logging more than 40 flights per day. The majority are air taxi operations, including helicopter rideshare Blade–branded flights. That company also operates a dedicated passenger terminal on-site. Law enforcement and air ambu- lances also use the heliport. Air tour flights at the site ended in 2010. The heliport has been in continuous opera-
tion since 1956. Begun with two helipads, it now hosts six, with parking for up to 11 helicopters (8 on a 30,000-sq.-ft. concrete wharf and 3 on an adjacent barge). Normal operating hours are 7 am
30
POWER UP SEP 2024
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76
