The world’s superyachts are the most opulent, luxurious and downright impressive machines ever built. And coming high on the list of superyacht design features is a helipad. A helipad is the superyacht must-have, allowing owners and guests the chance to explore further and get to and from their yacht quicker.
These air tenders are the next step from traditional tenders, providing the chance to explore remote far-flung corners of the world, or to simply travel in comfort and ease. Helipads come in all shapes and sizes on superyachts, with everything from commercial landing pads to touch-and-go decks. Last but not least, It is worth to mention that even thought someone would assume that helipads can only be accommodated by the biggest yachts, the motor yacht Buckpasser was one of the first to be built with a helipad in the 1980s, and at 36.8 meters she is a long way off the largest on the seas.
Please find below the list with most impressive helipads:
- M/Y Hodor: Hodor’s 220m2 is fully certified and CAP 437 compliant helipad and sits aft of the 66-metre catamaran’s upper deck. The Incat Crowther shadow cat features an Airbus H145 helicopter in matching stealth-grey among its plethora of superyacht toys.
M/Y Planet Nine: To prepare her for adventures in the Antarctic, Planet Nine’s helipad was designed with a lifting platform that allows the aircraft to be stowed in the hangar beneath when not in use. This also enables the 73 metre explorer yacht to carry two helicopters at once, allowing guests to arrive on board by chopper while the owner’s own helicopter is stowed safely away. The 73-metre Planet Nine was built to cruise the planet’s most challenging corners, including expeditions in the Antarctic.
- M/Y Planet Nine: To prepare her for adventures in the Antarctic, Planet Nine’s helipad was designed with a lifting platform that allows the aircraft to be stowed in the hangar beneath when not in use. This also enables the 73 metre explorer yacht to carry two helicopters at once, allowing guests to arrive on board by chopper while the owner’s own helicopter is stowed safely away. The 73-metre Planet Nine was built to cruise the planet’s most challenging corners, including expeditions in the Antarctic.
- M/Y Alfa Nero: When Oceanco rolled out 81 metre Alfa Nero in 2007 jaws around the world dropped. At the heart of her exterior design was a huge infinity pool with a glass aft end for uninterrupted views of the sea. Blink, however, and the pool disappears. The floor of the pool can be raised to create a shallow children’s pool, or brought fully up to create a dancefloor or, yes you guessed it, a helicopter landing pad. In keeping with the yacht’s style and elegance, even the helipad is adorned with a teak H.
- M/Y Cloudbreak: Espen Øino designed the 72.25 metre Abeking & Rasmussen explorer yacht Cloudbreak with a cinema lounge right next to the helipad, so returning heli-skiers could step straight inside from the Bell 429 Global Ranger and watch GoPro footage of their day’s performance on the slopes. Built-in 2016 for her adventurous owner, she has everything an adrenaline junkie could ever want, including a helipad. Her owner uses the helicopter to enjoy a spot of heli-skiing on inaccessible mountains blanketed in virgin snow. In fact, there’s even a cinema lounge next to the helideck – perfect for watching helmet footage of the day’s exploits
- M/Y Stella Maris: Yacht designer Espen Øino re-imagined the typically utilitarian helicopter deck on VSY’s revolutionary 72 metre superyacht Stella Maris. Øino envisioned a superyacht helipad that was a focal point. Rather than trying to disguise the helicopter deck, it defines the exterior profile on Stella Maris, jutting out on the upper aft deck. When not welcoming helicopters, the huge deck is put to good use as a space for sunning and socializing.
- M/Y Kismet: The foredeck on the 95.2-metre Lürssen superyacht Kismet is marked for half-court basketball, but it can also double up as a touch-and-go helipad. Her sport-loving owner Shahid Kahn has sports interests on both sides of the Atlantic, owning both the Jacksonville Jaguars basketball team and Fulham FC.
- M/Y Ulysses: The EC145 helicopter that belongs to 107 metre Kleven explorer yacht Ulysses is kept nice and cosy in its own hangar, which is situated forward of the helipad. The blades fold away for ease of storage and there’s enough space in the workshop for the engineer to carry out essential maintenance checks.
- M/Y Andromeda: Built-in 2015 by Norwegian shipbuilder Kleven, the 107 metre Andromeda – which was named Ulysses when she was first launched – is one of the world’s most astounding explorer yachts. She is designed to cruise through the ice, has an 8,500nm range, and is ready to tackle any destination on the planet in the utmost of luxury. And alongside her commercial helipad, Andromeda also has a heli-hangar on the top deck. It provides both safe storages of the helicopter when the yacht is underway, and enough space to act as a workshop for essential maintenance.
- M/Y Lady Christine: The helipad on 68 meter Feadship motor yacht Lady Christine was designed for full helicopter operations and she has the capacity for helicopter refueling on board. As a helicopter pilot himself, the owner was heavily involved in the design of the helipad. This can be seen in the practical aft deck location, with the mast and sky lounge providing shelter from prevailing winds, allowing the chopper to land while the yacht is underway.
- M/Y Eclipse: As the second-largest yacht in the world, the 162.5 meter Blohm+VossEclipse has plenty of room for a helicopter to land. Here we see one touching down on the helideck on the superyacht’s bow. Eclipse’s helicopter tucks away in a hangar below the foredeck in a specially designed heli-garage.
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