Air Tenders
Marilyn Mower
10/01/2005

The age of the air tender is upon us. Yacht owners appreciate the ease and security that helicopters provide by letting them join their yachts on short notice. Moreover, the helicopter-enabled yacht does not have to raise anchor and steam into port just to disembark a guest or two.

On Ilona IV. Top: The helicopter lands while the yacht is heading upwind. Bottom: The flame-retardant, landing pad (shown empty) tilts at a 30-degree angle to slip in and out of the helibay. Photography courtesy of Amels. (Click images to enlarge)

While the masses first glimpsed air tenders in the 1995 Bond flick GoldenEye, Feadship began incorporating them into the yachting lifestyle with the roll-out helideck aboard Lac II in 1975 and the helipad/swimming pool on Al Riyadh in 1978. Amels countered with the first below-deck helicopter garage on its expedition yacht Maupiti in 1993.

For most yachts, a helideck reinforced to absorb crash loading, figured as 2.5 times the helicopter’s takeoff weight; removable railings; modifications to deck drains; and an additional foam firefighting system are all that is required for daylight touch-and-go helicopter service. Some owners, however, want to carry their birds with them. Maintaining these $2.5-to $5-million investments in a marine environment is difficult, according to pilot and former yacht captain Nigel Watson, who now heads helicopter consulting service HeliRiviera. Helicopters carried aboard yachts without a garage must be rinsed with fresh water several times a day, the turbines rinsed after each flight, and inhibiting agents sprayed on sensitive parts. Indoor helicopter storage ensures adequate protection but will add roughly $1 million to the cost of an appropriately sized yacht.

On Ilona IV. With rotor blades folded, the helicopter fits neatly into its garage, which is sandwiched between the yacht’s port and starboard tender bays. Photography courtesy of Amels. (Click images to enlarge)

Despite routine maintenance, the helicopter carried on deck by Ilona III was unserviceable after a year’s worth of cruising. Understandably, the design for Ilona IV began with a garage, although the owner’s decision was based partly on aesthetics; he didn’t want his view from the hot tub to include the helicopter.

The innovative heligarage designed for Amel’s 74-meter Ilona IV was not without its challenges. Unlike Maupiti, she has an aft deck that is shorter than her helicopter. Complicating matters, the British Civil Aviation Authority insists that nothing extend higher than 250 millimeters (10 inches) on three sides of the landing deck. Working with Dutch subcontractor Winel, Amels created an 18-ram hydraulic helicopter platform that angles below deck as a foot slides into a shoe.

On Ecstasea. Top: Doors that are part of the superstructure slide apart, and railings are removed for clearance. Bottom: The platform, which has uplights for night landing, rises even with the doors. Photography courtesy of Feadship/Royal Van Lent. (Click images to enlarge)
As her owner’s Eurocopter Ecureuil AS 355 jet helicopter approaches, Ilona IV’s helibay doors fold back onto the main deck. The elevator emerges from the bay, moving backward so the helicopter will clear the overhanging deck above. The bay doors lock into the elevator sides, creating a substantial, nonskid platform for aircraft and guests. To store, the helicopter’s blades fold back and the chopper is made fast to the platform before it tilts 30 degrees and enters its storage bay.On DeVoogt’s design for the 86-meter Feadship Ecstasea, space had to be found to land two helicopters, one of which, a Eurocopter EC 135, would be stored inside. The DeVoogt approach was to place the garage in an area typically not used by owners and guests – the coach roof and bow area forward of the owner’s stateroom. By the designers’ slight of hand, it looks like the Eurocopter lands on the main deck. In reality, thanks to an exceptionally high bow, it lands on the deck above.

On Ecstasea. Top: Blades folded, the EC 135 is lowered straight down into the helibay. Bottom: A second, aft helipad is designed to accommodate larger aircraft. Photography courtesy of Feadship/Royal Van Lent. (Click images to enlarge)

To prepare for the helicopter’s arrival, the wedge-shaped flat coach roof parts and slides open horizontally. The elevator platform rises straight up from the hold and locks in at this height. Blades folded, the helicopter is lowered into its bay and the coach roof slides back to cover. In the hold, all lighting and switches are certified spark-free and the space is ventilated with filtered fresh air that is exchanged several times per minute.

Regardless of the location of the heligarage, the low flashpoint (100.4°F, 38°C) of aviation fuel is a primary concern. Helicopter fuel must be stored in a stainless steel tank surrounded by a floodable, grounded cofferdam adjacent to the hull. All piping and valves must be stainless. In addition to the yacht’s standard fire system, the helideck and garage need two additional systems, one static and one portable foam.

Contact HeliRiviera at 33 (0)4 93 90 53 00. www.heliriviera.com