Leeds to York by helicopter: two Yorkshire cities, 15 to 20 minutes apart

Leeds to York: the numbers

Leeds to York by helicopter takes about 15 to 20 minutes, against at least 49 minutes on the road.

The straight line is 20.5 nautical miles (24 statute miles). The road is 29 miles and 49 minutes even when it flows freely, so the helicopter typically saves about 32 minutes each way. The A64 and the A1(M) are the usual roads, and the saving is small on a quiet day and much larger on a race day.

When does a 15-minute flight make sense?

Leeds to York is the shortest route in this set at 15 to 20 minutes, against at least 49 minutes by road. That does not suit everyone. It suits a group that must be in York at a fixed time, a racing party who want to avoid the car parks on the Knavesmire, or a team that has a third stop afterwards. For a single meeting a few miles away, the car or the train is easier. We say so if it is.

Leeds East and York

Leeds East at Church Fenton is a privately owned licensed aerodrome with a 1,826 metre runway, open 08:00 to 18:00 every day with 24-hour landing on request. Prior permission goes through an online portal, and fuel is available around the clock. It is closer to York than Leeds Bradford. York Racecourse itself can be a landing site on race days, subject to landing permission and site suitability. See helicopter charter York and York Racecourse.

A same-day plan

1. Leave Leeds at 09:00, land at York between 09:15 and 09:20.
2. Racing or a business meeting in York.
3. Leave York at 16:00, land at Leeds between 16:15 and 16:20.

That is 30 minutes to 40 minutes in the air for the round trip. The same trip by car is at least 1 hour 38 minutes of driving, so the helicopter typically gives back about 1 hour 3 minutes across the day. For a 15-minute flight, the ground transfers at each end are as important as the flight. If the flight is cancelled because of the weather, you pay nothing.

The Ebor and a chain of Yorkshire stops

York racing, the Ebor meeting in the summer and the autumn fixtures, draws guests from Leeds and across the north. A chain such as Leeds, York and Newcastle works well; see Leeds to Newcastle and Harrogate. For a Leeds start, see Leeds. A car at the York end can be arranged with Executive Global Travel.

Where the figures come from

For Leeds to York the straight-line distance is 20.5 nautical miles. At a cruise of 135 knots that is about 9 minutes; we add 8 minutes for start-up, climb and the approach, which gives a block time of about 17 minutes, and we show it as a range, 10 per cent shorter to 12 per cent longer, rounded to the nearest five minutes. The road figure is the free-flowing time from a routing engine, so it is a floor. Real journeys on the day are usually slower. The other routes are on the UK helicopter routes page, and helicopter against car journey times explains the comparison.