Airline to offer commutes by helicopter

Shenzhen residents may soon have another way to get to Guangzhou: A local airline says it will launch a service to carry passengers between the cities by helicopter.

The service, being developed by Astro Air, is expected to shorten travel time between the two cities in Guangdong province by an hour, compared with a regular train. It would be roughly comparable to high-speed rail service, which takes about 35 minutes.

The airline says it will begin examining flight conditions along the new route this month and start to offer the service as early as September.