Helicopter
Flight Crew Air Transport Pilot (ATP)
Situational Awareness
Deviation / Discrepancy - Procedural FAR; Inflight Event / Encounter Object
General None Reported / Taken
Environment - Non Weather Related
First off I really appreciate the work that you do with the ASRS and look forward to the monthly Callback.... I fly out of a hospital heliport in...Florida.... A couple weeks ago a construction company placed a tower crane just across the canal from the helipad to the northwest. There are times when the longer horizontal part of the crane extends to within a couple hundred feet from the pad; approximately 1/3 of the way across the canal. The crane is about 300 FT high. When it was going up I went to the site and talked to someone there who said that the crane would meet all FAA regulations and would normally not extend over the water toward the helipad; but at night they allow it to move freely with the wind. I checked NOTAMS for the nearest airport...; and found none. There are only two red lights on the crane; one on the top of the vertical portion and one at the end of the long horizontal arm.... I have made numerous approaches into the hospital at night and; even knowing to look for the crane; I cannot see it until I get very close to it. The crane and the two lights get lost in the background lights of the city as I am on approach from above the crane. In the 20 years I have flown out of this location this is the most I have been concerned about something around here. I am worried that someone who is not familiar with the area and this new crane will hit it. If someone has to do a go around they might also fly right into it....I first tried contacting the FSDO and while the two inspectors I talked to understood the problem they said there was nothing they could do; it was not in their scope of work. The inspectors then referred me to...ATC. I finally reached one individual and he...said he'd check into the matter. Meanwhile this hazard is still here. It seems like it would be so simple for the FSDO Inspector to go there and explain the problem and get them to put more lights up on the horizontal arm of the crane. Hospital management has also gone over to the construction site with no apparent luck. The crane folks can put lights up; I have seen similar cranes lit up very well especially during the Christmas period. One final thing that we are doing at the hospital is to have our communications center advise all incoming helicopters about the crane. But there is a chance that someone might come in without calling our communications center or the communications center gets so busy they don't pass on the information. But all the crane company has to do to eliminate the problem is to light up the crane better.
Reporter stated that the construction company has now added additional lights to the crane and this has taken care of the problem.
Helicopter pilot expressed concern about an inadequately lit construction crane in close proximity to a hospital helipad.