Roubaix Hospital Heliport

The closure was likely due to a combination of factors. Primarily, the rooftop helipad no longer met evolving and increasingly stringent safety and regulatory standards for hospital aviation facilities (HIFU - Hospital Installation For Urgent Use). Upgrading the aging infrastructure would have been prohibitively expensive. Operationally, Helicopter Emergency Medical Services (HEMS) in the Lille metropolitan area were increasingly centralized at the larger, more modern heliport of the Lille University Hospital (CHRU Lille), reducing the necessity for a dedicated heliport in Roubaix.

The site is the rooftop of the main building of the Centre Hospitalier Victor Provo. The helipad markings have been removed, and the area is no longer used for aviation. It now functions as a standard building roof, housing various pieces of technical equipment and infrastructure for the operational hospital below. The hospital itself remains fully active, relying on ground ambulances for patient transfers.

The Roubaix Hospital Heliport was a critical piece of infrastructure for the Centre Hospitalier Victor Provo. As a rooftop helipad, its primary and sole function was to support Helicopter Emergency Medical Services (HEMS) operated by the regional SAMU (Service d'Aide Médicale Urgente). It enabled the rapid air transport of critically ill and injured patients, bypassing urban traffic congestion. This was vital for time-sensitive cases such as major trauma, cardiac emergencies, and stroke victims, significantly reducing transfer times to and from specialized care units within the regional hospital network.

There are no known official plans or prospects for reopening the heliport. Given the high cost of constructing a modern, compliant rooftop helipad and the established centralization of HEMS operations at the nearby Lille University Hospital, it is highly improbable that this specific facility will be reactivated.