PASSENGER transport by helicopter is likely to take off in the Pearl River Delta, an international seminar has been told.

　　The seminar in Chengdu, capital of Sichuan Province, was told there was huge potential for helicopter transport for business and tourism in China.

　　A helicopter service was launched from Hong Kong via Macao to Shenzhen in April this year. There are now four regular daily flights between Macao and Shenzhen. Meanwhile, chartered helicopter flights ply between Shenzhen and Hong Kong.

　　Experts in Hong Kong are optimistic about the mainland’s market for helicopter transport. They said that with China’s accession to the WTO, the Pearl River Delta area became more attractive for investment.

　　Business people from Hong Kong, Macao, Taiwan and foreign countries attend to a myriad affairs in the area daily, with time of the essence. They are keen to travel in the most efficient way and a helicopter meets this need.

　　A helicopter ride from Guangzhou to Hong Kong takes only half an hour, and to Macao only about 20 minutes. It is believed there is also great potential for the tourism market in Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou.

　　Last year, helicopters ferried 100,000 people between Hong Kong and Macao, with a ride lasting only 16 minutes, accounting for one percent of all the travelers between the two areas.

　　The Hong Kong-Macao helicopter route is reported to be the busiest in the world, with flights every half hour between 9 a.m. and 11 p.m.

　　The world has over 24,000 helicopters operating on civil routes, with 3.9 helicopters for every million people. In China, however, the figure is only 0.07 for every million people.(John Woo)