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476 HELICOPTER AIR SERVICE PROGRAM

The FAA has estimated that the annual cost of excessive elapsed time (number of minutes between estimated and actual off-time) at 245 high-density airports is $339.8 million and for all 1,183 airports, $363.8 million.¹ These estimates are based upon gross hours of delay and fully-allocated aircraft operating expense. (Annual costs of delay due to air traffic control alone are estimated to be $34 million.) Another method which considers only net hours of delay (crediting the system for time saved when aircraft arrive ahead of schedule) and incremental cash costs produces an estimated annual cost of approximately $55 million.² 

The potential is large for handling short-haul traffic by VTOL means at present airports, and utilizing unused landing area and terminal air space, or at separate heliports. For the US as a whole, 53 per cent of all air passengers travel under 500 miles and 25 per cent travel under 250 miles. Percentage distributions of traffic are shown for the top four top-ranking cities in the US in terms of air passengers in Table IV-5.

Table V-5

PERCENTAGE DISTRIBUTION OF DOMESTIC
ORIGIN AND DESTINATION AIR PASSENGERS AT THE FOUR
TOP-RANKING CITIES IN PASSENGERS, 1962

[[Six Columned Table]]

| |New York|Chicago|Los Angeles|San Francisco|United States|
|Distribution by:| | | | | |
|Total Passengers|100%|100%|100%|100%|100%|
|Trip Length (in miles)| | | | | |
|Under 50|-*|-|1.31|0.06|0.31|
|50-99|1.07|1.01|0.26|1.48|1.96|
|100-149|2.16|2.67|3.14|0.19|4.52|
|150-199|16.71|4.13|0.11|4.01|9.09|
|200-249|11.52|7.87|6.44|0.79|9.56|
|250-299|4.73|8.32|0.78|1.18|7.07|
|300-349|3.75|4.88|28.72|38.76|7.76|
|350-399|0.67|5.14|6.31|0.30|4.77|
|400-449|3.75|5.95|0.97|2.54|4.14|
|450-500|5.65|2.39|0.04|1.13|3.92|

|Total of under 501 miles|50.01|42.36|48.08|50.44|53.30|

*Less than .005 per cent.
Note: Table based upon CAB data but including estimate of PSA operations.

The study from which we quoted above, Safety Through Steep Gradient Aircraft, pointed out in 1955 that "the rosy picture (of reducing congestions through VLAC means) cannot be achieved even in the near future. It will be necessary to have considerable development of the large passenger helicopter before it can be accepted by the airlines as an income producing type of aircraft." We have discussed our own problems of seeing clearly at this time the near-term acceptance of aircraft by the airlines as income producing aircraft. But it must be recognized that the development of large passenger helicopters has come a long way since 1955. Helicopter carriers are now operating turbine aircraft with 25-28 seats; in 1955, the seating capacity was 3-5. And, what is more, greater progress could be made if urgency were attached to a commercial transport program.

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1 Staff Study Elapsed Time and Cost in Air Traffic Terminals - FY-1961, Air Traffic Service Program Division, Federal Aviation Agency, April 1962.
2 Economic Criteria for Federal Aviation Agency Expenditures, United Research, Inc., June 1962.

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