Helicopter

In the words of the Second Doctor, a helicopter was a "primitive form of flying machine". They were also known as choppers and "whirly birds".

The Fourth Doctor found a design of a helicopter in the laboratory of Leonardo da Vinci, in 1505, and commented that the idea "took a bit longer to catch on". (TV: City of Death)

Jamie McCrimmon, from the 18th century, could not recognise one in the 21st century. (TV: The Enemy of the World)

They were frequently used on Earth by the military, as they didn't need runways to land or take off.

20th century
On 22 December 1963, the Swiss mountain patrol sent a helicopter to evacuate Miss Tremayne's school when Lt Peter Sandoz did not report in; however, Peril Bellamy's telekinesis was activated, turning the wind into a cyclone which crashed the copter and killed the pilot. (AUDIO: Winter for the Adept)

In 1968, Victoria Waterfield was kidnapped by the seaweed-possessed John Robson in one of Euro Sea Gas's helicopters, and the Second Doctor and Jamie McCrimmon were flown out to Rig D in another in order to rescue her. After appropriating Robson's helicopter to enable him and his companions to escape from the rig, the Doctor mentioned once they were in the air that he had learnt how to fly a helicopter by watching Astrid Ferrier, but also pointed out that he wasn't sure how to land it. (TV: Fury from the Deep)

UNIT troops used a helicopter to rescue the Second Doctor's party from the International Electromatics factory. (TV: The Invasion)

In the 1970s, Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart had his own personal helicopter, which was used by Captain Mike Yates and Sergeant Benton to fly to Devil's End. It was destroyed when it struck Azal's heat barrier, which was surrounding the village, killing Tom Girton, who had stolen it. (TV: The Dæmons)

John Hart telephoned for an air sea rescue helicopter to be sent out to find the Third Doctor and Jo Grant. (TV: The Sea Devils)

An RAF helicopter was used to carry out a bombing raid on the disused mine in Llanfairfach to kill the giant maggots created by the pollutants from Global Chemicals. (TV: The Green Death)

A UNIT helicopter flew over Emmett's Electronics as part of Sergeant Benton's armed patrols around the factory. (TV: Robot)

The Fourth Doctor and Sarah Jane Smith travelled to Antarctica by helicopter. (TV: The Seeds of Doom)



On another occasion, while investigating the cause of the disappearance of an oil rig, Sarah was in a helicopter that ditched in the North Sea. (COMIC: The Sinister Sea)

In 1997, Flight Lieutenant Lavel piloted a helicopter to transport Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart to Carbury. It was shot down by Morgaine. (TV: Battlefield)

In 1999, Iris Wildthyme knew how to fly a helicopter. (AUDIO: The Panda Invasion)

21st century
Mathew O'Hara of the Butler Institute took a helicopter to and from work. The United Nations had a remote-controlled helicopter called an Odin. (PROSE: Cat's Cradle: Warhead)

On 1 January 2008, Byron, his men and Madeleine Fairweather took a helicopter to the SS Batavia. (AUDIO: The Girl Who Never Was)

Joshua Naismith sent a helicopter filled with troops to kidnap the Master and take him to his mansion. (TV: The End of Time)

In 2011, helicopters frequently patrolled the area surrounding Gwen Cooper's house in Wales. This aroused her suspicions as she was in hiding, but Rhys Williams passed it off as army practice. Following "Miracle Day", an armed helicopter was sent to kill her. Gwen destroyed it with a bazooka after a short chase. (TV: The New World)

In 2012, Henry van Statten had a personal helicopter with the call sign Bad Wolf One. (TV: Dalek)

In the same year, the Fortitude sent a helicopter to rescue members of an Antarctic expedition. The Seventh Doctor used it to return to the Ice Warriors. (AUDIO: Frozen Time)

In 2018, Astrid Ferrier had her own helicopter, which exploded, killing Rod and Curly, after its fuel tank was earlier punctured by the thugs' own bullets. (TV: The Enemy of the World)

UNIT mentioned dropping a Shakri cube out of a helicopter at 10,000 feet to test their incredible strength. (TV: The Power of Three)

On one occasion, UNIT noticed the Doctor's TARDIS standing in a field. Seeking his assistance with a mystery in the Under-Gallery, they picked it up with a helicopter to transport it back to headquarters. Unbeknownst to them however, the Eleventh Doctor and Clara Oswald were on board at the time. The Doctor crossly called Kate Lethbridge-Stewart from the TARDIS, as the helicopter flew them over London. Kate apologised and had the machine and its occupants brought directly to the "scene of the crime" at the National Gallery. (TV: The Day of the Doctor)

At some point in the 2020s, Lysandra Aristedes taught Sally Morgan to fly a helicopter. (AUDIO: Signs and Wonders)

22nd century
In the 2090s, Susan Campbell was granted the Presidential helicopter to go and find her son Alex who had been imprisoned. (AUDIO: An Earthly Child) At the beginning of the second Dalek invasion of Earth of the century, a helicopter brought Lucie Miller, along with Alex Campbell, from Thailand to a hospital in Singapore. (AUDIO: ''Lucie Miller