How To Identify Helicopters
Jan. 20th, 2023 04:38 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
goatgodschildIt has recently come to my attention that some people that I care about are unsure how to identify helicopters, and that this inability can be frightening in cases where unusual helicopters are out and about. I am decent at identifying helicopters (having spent all my life in an area with a lot of them), so here is a basic guide for those who are interested.
When you see a helicopter, the first question you should ask is, what color is it? Most helicopters have a white underside, so here are more color distinctions for the rest of the craft. Often, you can pick out rough symbols and letters on its side, either with the naked eye or with a pair of binoculars.
- Medical and rescue helicopters generally have some elements of orange or red, although they may sometimes have other colors. Their letters are generally darker in color.
- Firefighting helicopters are usually orange/red or blue-black
- Police helicopters are generally blue-black with paler letters, although there may be identifying letters in black on their undersides.
- Private helicopters are generally white, but may occasionally be greyish-black. However, they are always quite small.
- Military helicopters are generally "mottled" in their coloration, and do not have white undersides.
The next question you should ask is, what is its flight path? Helicopters are going to try to get where they need to with the minimum amount of effort, because fuel is expensive and time is often of the essence.
- If you are close to a hospital, it's probably headed there
- If there's a fire, it's probably moving to help with firefighting maneuvers
- If there's neither, then why might it be going where it is, for non-conspiratorial reasons?
The primary reason one sees "black helicopters" is that they are searching for potential fires.
When you see a helicopter, the first question you should ask is, what color is it? Most helicopters have a white underside, so here are more color distinctions for the rest of the craft. Often, you can pick out rough symbols and letters on its side, either with the naked eye or with a pair of binoculars.
- Medical and rescue helicopters generally have some elements of orange or red, although they may sometimes have other colors. Their letters are generally darker in color.
- Firefighting helicopters are usually orange/red or blue-black
- Police helicopters are generally blue-black with paler letters, although there may be identifying letters in black on their undersides.
- Private helicopters are generally white, but may occasionally be greyish-black. However, they are always quite small.
- Military helicopters are generally "mottled" in their coloration, and do not have white undersides.
The next question you should ask is, what is its flight path? Helicopters are going to try to get where they need to with the minimum amount of effort, because fuel is expensive and time is often of the essence.
- If you are close to a hospital, it's probably headed there
- If there's a fire, it's probably moving to help with firefighting maneuvers
- If there's neither, then why might it be going where it is, for non-conspiratorial reasons?
The primary reason one sees "black helicopters" is that they are searching for potential fires.
