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LOS ANGELES () — Southern California pilots say the Federal Aviation Administration has completely shut down the Los Angles International Airport airspace to all helicopters, including police, fire and medical emergency choppers.
Jorge Gonzalez, chief operating officer of Helinet and a former Los Angeles Police Department helicopter pilot, said the FAA this week began denying every request from helicopter pilots to enter or even cross LAX airspace.
“The controlled area for the LAX airport has been restricted to all helicopter operations. Period,” Gonzalez said. “What has caused this to occur is a mystery to me.”
The restricted zone covers a large swath of central Los Angeles, creating what operators describe as a sudden and unprecedented nofly zone for helicopters.
The restrictions are also impacting public safety agencies. A recorded message sent to LAPD units this week warned officers that police air support would not be available in certain areas because helicopters could not enter the airspace.
The LAPD confirmed that the restrictions were in place, saying the FAA gave no reason for the ban nor an estimate how long it will last.
Gonzalez said the ban also extends to fire department and emergency medical helicopter flights, including organ transport missions.
“Imagine human organ transplants and transports – there’s a shelf life on those,” he said. “That’s the reason they use helicopters – to expedite the delivery. The longer the organ is out, the more the risk of losing that organ.”
The FAA declined an interview but issued this written statement:
As a result of the FAA’s proactive nationwide safety review of airports with mixed helicopter and airplane traffic, we are evaluating restricting Visual Flight Rules (VFR) operations near Los Angeles International Airport (LAX). While we conduct this evaluation, air traffic controllers will more often prohibit VFR operators from entering LAX airspace based on the volume and complexity of traffic they’re working, along with daily airspace occurrences including weather and any nearby construction.
But Gonzalez said every request he’s been aware of has been denied.
The FAA did not say how long the restrictions would remain in place or whether other airports are under similar limits. A review of available records shows no documented case of a helicopter colliding with an airplane in LAX airspace.
“Maybe in the near future we’ll get some relief, maybe some new parameters, but not a complete ban from the airspace,” Gonzalez said.
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