Heli-Planner

Heli-Planner is a helicopter flight planning tool focused on lift and fuel calculations for helicopter operations. It allows operators to set up missions by entering aircraft weight, altitude, temperature, pilot weight, fuel specific gravity, and equipment fitted, and to compute start fuel, flight time, and burn rates. The interface also references operational documentation, weight and balance, performance, ATC waypoints, and other planning tabs used in helicopter flight operations.

The tool is designed for aerial work crews who need to work out how much they can lift on each leg, how much fuel they need, whether the centre of gravity is within limits, and how much duty time they have left. It also helps keep the logbook, the day's jobs, and the crew handover in the same place, and allows sending the plan to the operator with one button.

The aircraft weights, the forms, and the limits come from the operator, so users are not typing them in themselves. The emergency checklists from the flight manual are included in the app as well, providing a comprehensive suite of operational data.

Users can set up the flight once, and the rest of the app uses what they entered, so they are not typing the same figures in twice. This includes setting up the helicopter, the altitude and temperature at the site, the pilot's own weight, and what is on board such as seats, holds, and equipment switched on and off.

The application works without a signal on iPad, phone, and computer, allowing users to access today's flight data even in remote locations. The operator gives access to the specific flight information needed for the day's operations.

The tool calculates internal, external, and performance-based load limits per leg and accounts for factors such as HESLO 4 capacity. It also checks the centre of gravity at take-off and with zero fuel against the flight manual envelope.

Users can paste waypoints from Air Navigation Pro or load a GPX file to build their flight legs. The system links legs together, so if the fuel on the first leg is changed, the weight that can be carried on the last one changes accordingly.

The app displays performance data based on the temperature and altitude at the site using tables provided by the operator. It also tracks duty time over the last 5, 7, and 28 days, showing which limits will be run into first and what would be left after another three days of work.

The logbook feature creates one row per flight, maintaining a record that integrates with the existing logbook users already keep. It also allows users to fit a basket or carry a passenger on a single leg without affecting the others.

The app shows the maximum weight, liftable internal and external weights, fuel on board, and centre of gravity status for each leg. It also displays the distance, performance, time, and liftable weights for each leg in the flight plan.

Heli-Planner has no reviews on Trustburn yet. Anyone who has used it can write the first review on its Trustburn page.