sightseeing helicopter will be thankful it leaves the Island today aboard the Oleander container ship.

However, Mr. Smatt said yesterday he did not receive one complaint of noise the whole two months he flew the leased helicopter in local skies.

He added he made sure to maintain a good height and distance offshore to minimise noise, plus he varied his routes.

Mr. Smatt said he was overwhelmed by the demand for sightseeing tours of the Island.

He said he carried 450 people -- mostly local residents - in the three weeks he had before having to return the craft to Canadian-based Pegasus Helicopters.

At a cost of $60 a passenger for a 15-20-minute ride, he flew offshore along North Shore, over Hamilton Harbour and the Great Sound, across Southampton or Warwick, along the beaches of the South Shore, over Tuckers Town and back to the airport.

Mr. Smatt said he had no plans to bring the helicopter back, but added there are no limitations on his Civil Aviation Department operating certificate stopping him.

Although Mr. Smatt made a profit this time around, he said he did not when he first brought the helicopter to Bermuda last year to give tours to freelance photographers. He was restricted from giving the general public tours.

Mr. Smatt brought the helicopter back in June for a photo contract with the Department of Tourism which he completed on July 18.

He then applied for permission to give aerial tours to residents and tourists.

In the past Government has shown a strict attitude towards civilian helicopters, preventing a wealthy foreign businessman in the late 1970s from commuting by helicopter between his Southampton home and Front Street.

But it decided to give Mr. Smatt permission to operate aerial sightseeing tours about the end of last month, giving him just three weeks to do so before he had to return the helicopter to Canada.

"We were not prepared for the response,'' he said. "It was excellent.''