Uber Aims For The Skies, Launches 20-minute Helicopter Tours Across Dubai

by Arabian Business | Middle East

* The UberChopper gives tourists an airial 20 minute
overview of Dubai. (Credit: Arabian Business)

Taxi hailing app Uber adapted its service for the City of Dubai, and according a report by the Arabian Business, will offer a special helicopter tour of Dubai - until early next year 2016, the company has revealed.

The UberChopper, is an exclusive helicopter service, introduced for the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix weekend and UAE National Day, but proved so successful that Uber said in a statement to Arabian Business, that it has decided to continue the service for the time being.

For now however, it will continue in the form of UberTour, a 20-minute helicopter tour of Dubai, “until early next year”, Uber said.

The daytime service begins with a safety briefing at The Atlantis helipad. Then passengers will take off for a journey over Old Dubai, Downtown Dubai and Dubai Marina.

Jambu Palaniappan, regional general manager Eastern Europe, Middle East, Africa, told 7DAYS the response to the Grand Prix was “super positive”.

“Every trip that we offered was occupied. We’ve done this in a few cities; this [the UAE] is by far one of our most successful – a good chopper market.”

He added: “We are now running UberCHOPPER for a few [more] months. It’s a great demand generator for licensed companies that have helicopters.”

Uber has cited the Middle East as one of its fastest growing regions globally, and two weeks ago committed to invest $250 million in the Middle East and North Africa area.