HELIPORT INFRASTRUCTURE AUDIT

The FAA doesn't know what's on its own heliport registry.

Of the 5,647 FAA-registered heliports in the US, hundreds no longer exist, thousands have inaccurate data, and none have been verified against current standards. AirIndex screens every facility against five compliance questions — then tells you exactly which sites need remediation, what the liability exposure looks like, and how to prioritize action.

5,647
FAA-REGISTERED HELIPORTS
3,868
CONDITIONAL DETERMINATIONS
42
OBJECTIONABLE DETERMINATIONS
50
STATES COVERABLE
WHY THIS MATTERS

FAA Advisory Circulars are used as the “standard of care” in civil aviation lawsuits. Deviation from the standard equals negligence exposure. Insurance carriers are covering heliport assets they have never verified. State DOTs are planning AAM corridors anchored to heliports that may not meet current standards. As the FAA continues to develop unified vertical flight infrastructure standards, facilities that are not aligned with evolving requirements face increasing regulatory exposure.

Five-Question Compliance Checklist

Every heliport is assessed against five questions. The output is a three-tier classification: COMPLIANT, CONDITIONAL, or OBJECTIONABLE.

Q1: FAA RegistrationLIVE

Does the facility have a current FAA NASR 5010 registration?

Source: FAA NASR 28-day subscription
Q2: Airspace DeterminationLIVE · GAP SURFACED

Is there an FAA OE/AAA airspace determination on file? Of 2,747 hospital-affiliated heliports we track, 184 (6.7%) have a current determination — the remaining 93% are operating against a baseline that was either never established or has lapsed. Conditional and objectionable determinations are flagged at the facility level.

Source: FAA OE/AAA Determined Cases
Q3: State Enforcement PostureLIVE · COVERAGE EXPANDING

Does the state actively enforce heliport/vertiport standards? States with strong enforcement have lower compliance risk across the portfolio. Verified posture data live for 17 states; remaining states scored under the Missing Data Treatment Protocol per published methodology.

Source: AirIndex Market Context Store
Q4: NFPA 418 AdoptionLIVE · PER-ENGAGEMENT EXPANSION

Is NFPA 418 (Standard for Heliports) referenced in the local fire or building code? Absence means the facility may not meet current safety standards. Municipality-level ordinance audits are added on engagement; 5 metros baseline today.

Source: Municipality ordinance audit
Q5: eVTOL Dimensional ViabilityLIVE — DIMENSIONAL PRE-SCREEN ACTIVE

Can the TLOF/FATO accommodate eVTOL dimensional requirements? Most existing pads were built to standards that do not meet EB-105A 2D FATO requirements.

Source: FAA NASR APT_RWY pad dimensions + AC 150/5390-2C formula chain

Compliance Tiers

COMPLIANT
Passes all five compliance questions. All data verified — no unknowns remain.
Defensible coverage basis. Standard renewal recommended.
PRESUMED COMPLIANT
No failures identified, but one or more questions remain unanswered due to data gaps (e.g., airspace determination not yet matched, eVTOL viability not physically assessed).
Likely compliant but not verified. Recommend Level 2 screening to resolve unknowns before relying on this status for coverage decisions.
CONDITIONAL
Fails one or more questions but gaps are remediable. Specific remediation requirements identified.
Coverage conditional on remediation timeline. Known risk with documented basis.
OBJECTIONABLE
Fails multiple questions or has a critical gap. Physical verification confirms significant compliance deficit.
Unquantified liability exposure. Coverage not recommended without remediation plan.

The tool, on a single facility

Live render of the screening surface for JACKSON MEML HOSPITAL (25FA, MIAMI, FL). Same output an underwriter or developer pulls when assessing the site — tier, dimensional analysis, compliance profile, gap flags. Multiplied across every facility in a portfolio for engagement-tier deliverables.

Live facility assessment
JACKSON MEML HOSPITAL
25FA · MIAMI, FL
Risk tier
MODERATE
48/100
Obstruction Score
32/100
MODERATE
Compliance profile
Q1
PASS
Q2
ON_FILE
Q3
STRONG
Q4
ADOPTED
Q5
AT_RISK
Dimensional analysis
Heliport · 1.5D FATO
90 ft req
Gap: +40 ft
eVTOL · 2D FATO
120 ft req
Gap: +70 ft
Pad: 50×50 ft · CONC
Gap flags (2)
  • Severe state regulatory burden
  • eVTOL dimensional constraint — FATO (2D) requires 70 ft beyond recorded pad
Public sample. Full per-facility report (OES obstruction analysis, peer benchmark, underwriting recommendation, remediation roadmap) delivered on engagement.

And across a portfolio

The same screening repeated across every facility in a state or portfolio. Live slice below from the Florida sample — all 381 facilities scored, the distribution surfaced, the conditional and presumed-compliant tiers separated.

Total facilities
381
Compliant
1
Presumed compliant
185
Conditional
195
Objectionable
0
FacilityStatusQ1 RegistrationQ2 AirspaceQ3 StateQ4 NFPA 418Q5 Dimensions
ADVENT HEALTH ALTAMONTE SPRINGS
01FD · ALTAMONTE SPRINGS, FL
CONDITIONALPASSUNKNOWNSTRONGADOPTEDAT_RISK
ADVENT HEALTH CELEBRATION
77FL · CELEBRATION, FL
CONDITIONALPASSON_FILESTRONGADOPTEDAT_RISK
SHANDS JACKSONVILLE HOSPITAL
FA61 · JACKSONVILLE, FL
CONDITIONALPASSUNKNOWNSTRONGADOPTEDAT_RISK
JACKSON MEML HOSPITAL
25FA · MIAMI, FL
CONDITIONALPASSON_FILESTRONGADOPTEDAT_RISK
TAMPA GENERAL HOSPITAL
61FL · TAMPA, FL
CONDITIONALPASSON_FILESTRONGADOPTEDAT_RISK
Showing 5 of 381 Florida facilitiesOpen the full Florida sample →

Who This Is For

State DOTs & Aviation Divisions
Baseline the heliport infrastructure you already have. Identify which facilities are compliant, which need remediation, and which are data quality issues in the FAA system.
Insurance Carriers & Underwriters
Screen your portfolio against five compliance criteria. Stop pricing risk based on self-reported documentation. Know which sites are compliant, conditional, or objectionable before renewal.
Airport Authorities
Audit heliport assets under your jurisdiction. Identify facilities that don’t meet current AC 150/5390-2D standards before the FAA’s unified Advisory Circular takes effect.
Infrastructure Developers
Site selection starts with verified data, not FAA 5010 records known to be inaccurate. Know which existing heliports can support eVTOL conversion and which are greenfield only.
PUBLIC SAMPLES

Two state-level audits published as public samples — Florida (381 heliports including the Miami metro) and South Carolina (49 heliports). Same five-question scoring, statewide pass rates, and flagged-facility tables you receive on engagement. Full state portfolios, custom geographies, and per-facility deep dives delivered on contract.

Florida SampleSouth Carolina Sample
PHYSICAL VERIFICATION

For sites flagged in pre-screening, physical verification is recommended by a qualified heliport inspector. AirIndex provides the automated screening layer — on-site SMS risk analysis, obstruction surveys, and TLOF/FATO measurement are performed by credentialed infrastructure consultants.

Standards applied: Title 14 CFR Part 5, ICAO Annex 14, ISO 31000, AC 150/5390-2D

Request an audit for your state or portfolio

All engagements begin with a discovery call. Pricing confirmed after scope validation.

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