Manchester to Edinburgh by helicopter: 70 to 90 minutes

Manchester to Edinburgh: the times side by side

Manchester to edinburgh by helicopter takes about 70 to 90 minutes, against at least 4 hours 40 minutes on the road.

Manchester Airport to Edinburgh Airport is 160.5 nautical miles, which is about 70 to 90 minutes by helicopter. The road is 230 miles and takes at least 4 hours 40 minutes with nothing in the way. That is a typical saving of about 3 hours 20 minutes each way, the second-biggest in our comparison after London to Newcastle.

Departing from the Barton heliport instead of the airport shortens the flight a little, to roughly 70 to 85 minutes, because Barton sits west of the city and the distance north is slightly less.

Sites at each end

In Manchester the choices are Manchester Airport and the heliport at Barton, about five miles west of the centre, which has a departure lounge, free parking and 24-hour availability on request. Both are prior-permission-required, and we book them with your flight.

Edinburgh Airport has a 2,558 metre runway and a business aviation centre open round the clock. A handling agent is mandatory for every flight, helicopters included, and parking space is limited, so every aircraft is booked in advance with the agent; that is something we do before you travel. Night noise limits apply, so we avoid late arrivals where possible.

Both ends are in the UK, so there is no customs or passport stage.

The flight north

The route runs north across the Pennines and the Lake District fringe, over the Cumbrian and Border hills and into the Lothians. It is the most exposed of our routes to hill cloud, so the forecast along the whole track matters, not just at each end. Air traffic control, restricted areas and the weather decide the exact line, and we choose the height to suit. If low cloud sits on the hills, we may suggest a different departure time rather than push on.

Who flies it and why

Edinburgh is a major financial centre and the seat of the Scottish Government, so the route serves finance, law and the public sector as much as it serves industry. A morning flight north and an afternoon flight back gives you a full day in Scotland without a night away; see same-day business trips.

It also works as a link in a longer chain. A team can start in London, stop in Manchester, and carry on to Scotland, or continue to other parts of Scotland from Edinburgh. If you are moving someone discreetly, secure helicopter transport sets out how a single leg keeps public exposure low.

Planning a day in Edinburgh from Manchester

1. Leave Barton at 07:30, land at Edinburgh between 08:40 and 08:55.
2. Meetings from about 09:30 to 15:00.
3. Leave Edinburgh at 15:30, land at Barton between 16:40 and 16:55.

From Manchester Airport the flying total is 2 hours 20 minutes to 3 hours. By road the round trip is at least 9 hours 20 minutes on the road, so the helicopter typically saves about 6 hours 40 minutes across the day, and the car version is not a realistic same-day trip.

What the car figure does not include

The 4 hours 40 minutes has no traffic, no stop and no parking in Edinburgh, where parking in the centre is limited and slow. A real drive of this length usually includes a break. In the helicopter plan you arrive 10 minutes before departure, supply weights, and arrange the car from Edinburgh Airport into the city, which a chauffeur can do.

How we work out the times

For Manchester to Edinburgh the straight-line distance is 160.5 nautical miles (185 statute miles). Flying that at a cruise of 135 knots takes about 71 minutes; we add 8 minutes for start-up, climb and the approach, which gives a block time of about 79 minutes. We then show it as a range, 10 per cent shorter to 12 per cent longer, rounded to the nearest five minutes: 70 to 90 minutes. The road figure of 4 hours 40 minutes (230 miles) is the free-flowing time from a routing engine, so it is a floor. Real journeys on the day are usually slower.

For a shorter route in the North, see Newcastle to Edinburgh. The whole set is on the UK helicopter routes page and explained in our article on helicopter against car journey times. The north-western end is covered in North West England.