Turbulence Assessment in Vertiport Regulations

The European Aviation Safety Agency, the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration, the Australian Civil Aviation Safety Authority, and the U.A.E. General Civil Aviation Authority have all already issued documents in relation to the design of vertiports and guidelines on the expected operations by eVTOL aircraft. While some are in draft format, they already give us a good indication of what the regulations will look like for the operators that will be first to market.

One common requirement is that the FATO should be located to minimise the influence of the surrounding environment, including turbulence, which could adversely affect VTOL-capable aircraft operations. There must also be an assessment of turbulence and airflow characteristics near and across the surface of the FATO to determine if turbulence mitigating design measures are necessary.

Vertiport site selection will have to take into consideration these rules, as well as find sites that have public acceptance and support from the local urban administrations. This will take considerable time and effort and it would be crucial to be able to eliminate any sites that are too adversely affected by local weather effects and turbulence issues, as early as possible in the process.

Instead of relying solely on “DOT/FAA/PM-84/25 – Evaluating Wind flow Around Buildings on Heliport Placement”, get in touch to see how DM-AirTech can help you with this process, using the latest CFD techniques and our proprietary technology.

DM-AirTech Team