Originally Posted by LarryJ
Um, no it's not. LAS to GCN is 169 miles which would take 1:28 at 100kts. You'd have to fly over 220kts to make that in 40 minutes which a tour helicoptor can not.
I apologize for my lack of clarity. I should have written that it's 40-45 to the Grand Canyon, instead of writing it's 40-45 minutes to GCN. My attempt to write the *Grand Canyon* in shorthand inadvertantly reflected an airport code. Thanks for bringing this to my attention.
The flight I'm trying to describe leaves LAS, goes over Hoover Dam, along Lake Mead, and then descends into and lands at the bottom of the Grand Canyon. Combo packages from there include hummer tours, jet skiing, raft trips, and/or horse back riding.
Originally Posted by LarryJ
What he's probably talk about is a tour to 1G4 which in Canyon West Airport. LAS to 1G4 is 75 miles or 0:39 at 100kts. That is at the western-most end of the Grand Canyon where the canyon is significantly smaller than it is in the GCN area and where there is only a single canyon, not a canyon within a larger canyon. I'd recommend going all the way to GCN as you'll see a much large amount of the Grand Canyon, more than half of it, and you'll see a portion of the canyon where it is at it's largest.
Take an airplane tour from LAS to GCN then take a helicopter tour from GCN or Tusyan down into the canyon.
Yes, that's exactly what he's talking about
: the western-most end of the Grand Canyon. The OP asked about a tour that included a trip to the bottom of the canyon. Although the west end is smaller, it is currently the only area of the Grand Canyon where helicopter landings are allowed. The bigger, wider east end of the Grand Canyon is limited to air traffic only. Except, of course, for the landings that are allowed in Havasupai Canyon, a side canyon that branches into the GC. Although, it's not truly a landing at the bottom of the Grand Canyon, it's still a spectacular tour. FWIW, I believe that Papillon is the only company that offers helicopter tours from Tusayan to Havasupai Village (located at the bottom of Havasupai Canyon).
Hope I have been more clear this time round. Any mistakes that remain are mine and not the chief pilot's.
