Although hospital landing sites and other assistance landing sites are off-aerodrome landing sites and not infrastructures within the meaning of the Aviation Act, they are explicitly not subject to the provisions of the Off-Aerodrome Landing Ordinance (OALO), but rather Article 56 of the Ordinance on Aviation Infrastructure (AvIO).
There are currently over 200 hospital helicopter landing pads in Switzerland. These and other assistance landing sites such as those at tunnel portals or police stations are used for off-aerodrome landings and are therefore not formally considered aerodromes or classed as part of the aviation infrastructure defined in the sectoral plan for aviation infrastructure.
However, assistance landing sites have a special function throughout the country and have some aviation-related particularities. These include: H24 operations, use by a limited number of helicopter companies and a location often in populated areas; a growing number of construction sites, infrastructure changes and aviation-specific issues; the need among some helicopter companies to conduct SAR and ambulance flights and organ transport flights at hospital landing sites using IFR. The FOCA has therefore established guidelines for dealing with these infrastructure and operation issues and drawn up criteria for flight rules at these landing sites.
Last modification 15.11.2023
