Mt. Whitney Portal Store & Hostel Forums General Mt. Whitney Portal Store Message Board How much IS helicopter

ride from SAR if they come get you off the top of Whitney?

In a big bird like a Chinook? A lot.

On the plus side, the crew got very good training on the mission............................DUG

Choppers are expensive.

My neighbor was med-evaced on a helicopter for a total of 60 miles: the bill ... $16,500. This was from hospital-to-hospital which is completely different from SAR. But if you have any doubt, re-read my first sentence.

For CHP it is free. Mercy Air which is a private medical helicopter is normally around $10,000 base cost, then around $50 to $75 per mile.

It's not "free" to operate a helo. Someone is paying and it's a lot. For CHP, military, etc, it's taxpayers money...........................DUG

In a recent previous life I was a HH-60G Communications Tech in a USAF Combat Search and Rescue unit, like most people we hoped these types of situations didn't happen....but they do, and when they happened we were more than happy to assist. You can train and train for a Rescue but there's nothing like the real thing to build confidence and ensure existing plans work. As far as cost, our unit was budgeted for X hours of flying for the year to accomplish aircrew training, cross country flights, deployments, using the hours to fly Rescue Ops was more bang for the buck!

KUDOS to all who assisted in this rescue, I truly appreciate what they do!


"These Things we do, that others may live"

Msgt Ret.
Stormin' Norman

I remember back in the early 90's when you had to watch a video in the Ranger station before you could get a back country permit and you were told if you had to be rescued by helicopter it would cost about $25,000: that was almost 20 years ago. I tolded my hiking partners then, if I broke my ankle, knee or something, to built a thing like the indians use-to-use to move their belongs and drag my carcass down the mountain!

Travois.






Have fun...

yes I know who pays for a CHP ride. CHP prefers NOT to pick up people because they are not set up for it and its takes away bussiness from private companys like Mecry Air. I have had to pay for two Mercy Air rides myself, but this question was in requard to how much it would cost the injured hiker which is nothing......

Most agencies/counties don't charge for a helicopter, though I think some charge the county of origin of the person being flown out. That county can then think about charging the person. It's on the theory that if people are charged (as for a SAR) then they won't call for help before it becomes way more complicated and, perhaps, life threatening.

In the Sierra, the private helicopter medivac services (Life Flight etc) are limited. They can't land safely above about 8,000 feet and I've never known them to land in mountainous terrain (backcountry). Yosemite and Sequoia Kings both have contract ships in the parks from about mid-May to later October and they handle almost all SAR and Fire. With a critical patient, it does often happen that Life Flight will meet the Agency helicopter and transfer the patient. They also provide a higher level of patient care as does CHP (though park medics -- essentially paramedics -- routinely respond to all NPS medivacs now).

CHP (the officer-pilot and paramedic) love to fly in the mountains -- don't know what their agency policy is. Anything to get off the highway 99 corridor. They're a very heavy ship, though, and have to off load a bunch of stuff to land above 8,000. They will definitely respond if needed, but have to think about it.

George