Thumby Aviation, a heli taxi operator, will start flights next week to ferry air passengers from Bengaluru’s Kempegowda International Airport (KIA) to Electronics City, where companies such as Infosys and Wipro are based, said the firm’s managing director K.N.G. Nair.
“We are starting the service next week with one helicopter,” Mr. Nair said in a telephone interview.
Six-seater
“It is a Bell-407, which we got for about ₹33 crore, and it is a 6-seater. Currently, it takes more than an hour-and-half to reach Electronics City. The heli taxi service will take just 15 minutes,” he said.
KIA handled 25 million passengers in 2017. India’s domestic air traffic grew 18% year-on-year to 117.18 million passengers in 2017, according to the Directorate General of Civil Aviation.
Each ticket may work out to ₹4,000 including taxes,” Mr. Nair said.
“In the next two years we may add five more helicopters,” he added.
The company plans to fly to and from the destination in two slots between 6.30 a.m. and 9.30 a.m and 3.30 p.m. and 6.30 p.m. And the number of flights would depend on the bookings. Passengers can book tickets through the HeliTaxii App.
