How do I unlock helicopters?

Solution 1:

The earliest I have found that you can unlock a helicopter is during the main storyline. Once you complete the mission Trojan Whores, you receive a Vulture helicopter for the mission reward. It's accessible at the Saints HQ pad in Sunset Park. Just go outside next to the pool (after you're inside the HQ, so the outside of the penthouse) and you'll see the floating key indicating a garage, which is where you'll be able to store future helicopters.

I was level 15 when I acquired this, which is 9 levels earlier than you can receive the Heli Homie. I'd also done a bunch of activities on the side to raise my level though, so if you just go straight for the Trojan Whores mission, you'll unlock it earlier.

Solution 2:

This is what I've discovered:

• You don't get helicopter storage until Act 2 at the Saints Penthouse HQ, so it doesn't matter which ones you find in Act 1.
• The Airport Crib is only for airplanes, not helicopters.
• The helipads at the airport are raised structures on the western end.
• The helipads at the National Guard armory have Eagles, in both armed and unarmed models, if you do try to steal one, make sure you run off with the armed one (you can see the missile pods on the sides).
• Helicopter Homie will deliver a Tornado to you, put that in your helipad at Saint's HQ to keep it instead of having to call him all the time. This was the first combat copter I managed to keep (I did this before finishing the "Trojan Whores" mission).
• "Trojan Whores", as @FallenAngelEyes said, will unlock a Vulture.
• Finishing all the "Heli Assault" diversions will not unlock a helicopter.
• STAG has two VTOL aircraft, both are stored at your helipads. One is a VTOL fighter with a laser cannon, the other is a troop transport.

Solution 3:

You can get several helicopters anytime, but you need to have access to the Saints HQ Penthouse to store them. Outside the penthouse, past the pool, there is a helipad. Take the helicopter there, then once you land on it, press E (or whichever key) to store it. There are two different helicopters at the airport, along the west building (along the water). On the army base island, in the middle yard with 4 helipads, there are 7 Eagles and 1 Eagle with miniguns and rockets. The weapon variant Eagle is on the southeast helipad. Also on the army base island, on the helipad on the roof of the building, there is a Tornado (so you can just store that one, instead of buying heli delivery).

Once STAG arrives in Steelport, you can get a few VTOL aircraft. Althought they fly like a plane (and an alternate hover setting) you can still store and keep them in the Saints HQ penthouse helipad.

Solution 4:

if you are looking to find the helicopters at the airport they're the Stork (big cargo helicopter) and the Thompson (little ugly one) but you have to be on foot or in a land vehicle for them to spawn. If you go to the army base the eagles will spawn all the time but the Tornado (army paint) is on top of the building, I got it by skydiving onto the top of the building.

If you use cheats get the RC possessor and the money cheat and upgrade it to level 4 then you can control any helicopter. If you want the red (Morningstar) tornado you need to get maximum wanted level on Morningstar then it will come after you but you need to use the RC possessor