Buzzed out: Chicagoans say tour helicopters are driving them crazy

CHICAGO - Perhaps you've heard the tour helicopters buzzing in and around downtown Chicago. They offer a spectacular view of our beautiful city.

But some residents say they also generate a lot of noise day and night that's impacting their lives.

"Imagine that every four or five minutes and that starts to get maddening," said West Loop resident Justin Campbell, who invited us up to the roof of his condo building to show us what he says has become a major irritation for people living near downtown.

Dozens of times a day and often hundreds of times a week, tour flights operated by Fly Heli Chicago, which opened at Vertiport Chicago near Ashland and Roosevelt in 2023, crisscross over the downtown area, and often directly over Campbell’s roof.

"All of a sudden it seemed there was a flood of helicopters and very low-altitude helicopters," he said.

His frustration growing, Campbell recorded dozens of videos of the low-flying choppers skimming across his neighborhood, which overlooks a park and the UIC Medical Complex.

"It’s extremely loud. It’s a very guttural, chopping sound," Campbell said. "I mean, living in the city, you expect to hear noise, of course. Whether that's police helicopters, buses, etcetera. That's all normal. But not this type of activity. We're talking about hundreds of flights per week."

Second Ward Alderman Brian Hopkins represents North Side residents who've also complained about the Fly Heli Chicago noise.

"The only way these tour companies can make money is if they have a high volume of tourists who are paying to take the ride," said Hopkins. "The sound of a helicopter is the staccato sound of the rotor blades. Many people find it irritating."

Hopkins, working through Illinois Senator Dick Durbin, complained to the Federal Aviation Administration. The agency, which oversees aviation in the United States, responded in a letter to Durbin, saying in part:

"The FAA does not limit aircraft overflights of a particular geographical area unless the operation is unsafe... the FAA generally cannot restrict or dictate how many flights or at what hours aircraft operators can fly an area."

Hopkins said it’s frustrating that there’s little the city can do.

"But that isn't to say we can't continue to have discussions with them. We will continue pushing the helicopter companies to behave a little more responsibly as a good neighbor should."

In a statement, Fly Heli Chicago acknowledged the complaints, saying:

"We understand the concerns some residents have raised, and we take them seriously. In the past month we brought on outside consultation with extensive experience flying in Chicago specifically to help us reduce the noise impact of our aircraft. As a result, we completely reworked our helicopter routes, and those revised routes—designed to mitigate noise pollution—were implemented last week."

But impacted residents worry that will end up just pushing the problem elsewhere.

"There's got to be a better solution," said Campbell. "I think we're all for tourism and supporting the local economy. But this is being done at the expense of people who live here and pay taxes here."