Thumby Aviation’s helitaxii model has been tested successfully in different parts of the country.
Bengaluru, known as the Silicon Valley of India, is known for its buzzing entrepreneurial spirit, IT parks, greenery and diversity. One thing the beautiful city is infamous for is the not-so-beautiful traffic. One fine day, a dynamic young professional was traversing through the length of the city from Electronic City (IT hub of Bangalore) to reach the airport, which is on the other end of the city, to catch a flight. The peak traffic caught up to him, making him realise that he was on track to miss his flight. He called his father Gp. Capt. Dr. KNG Nair, who was running a Kerala-based helicopter charter service company called Thumby Aviation Pvt Ltd, asked him to airlift him from his part of the city to the airport. Although his request went in vain, the event triggered a worm in the brains of the father-son duo, leading to the birth of Helitaxii: Asia’s first intra-city air taxi service. The founder is Govind Nair, who is currently the CEO of Thumby Aviation Pvt Ltd.
Before discussing his Entrepreneurial journey, the vision behind Helitaxii and the future of Thumby Aviation, let us understand a brief background about the man behind the vision. Govind pursued his MBA, specialising in sales and marketing at the prestigious IIFT (Indian Institute of Foreign Trade). He had a brief stint as a sales consultant in Colgate Palmolive before joining Thumby Aviation as head of Business Development. Moving up the organisational ladder and taking the organisation alongside him in the growth journey, he leads today as the CEO of Thumby Aviation pvt ltd. When our team interviewed a member of his team who closely works with him, the person said- “The reason behind the success of Govind, in my limited understanding, is 3 pronged: He is still a salesperson by heart; his diverse and paradoxical mix of exceptional education and experience working on the ground, and most importantly his ability to listen and absorb ideas irrespective of the source.”
Moving on to Helitaxii, led by Govind Nair, then the head of Business Development at Thumby Aviation, the idea got wings on 6th March 2018 when the first Heli Taxi took off from Electronic City and reached the helipad in Kempegowda International Airport with a flying time of 15 minutes. It was the first time in Asia that an intra-city helitaxi service was established.
Apart from the tedious travel time of 2 hours, cabs for the same travel route cost passengers between Rs 1,500-3,500. These Helitaxi’s were priced at Rs 4,000 (inclusive of GST). Hence, the value proposition of helitaxii was that it allowed you to fly from one part of the city to the other, beating traffic, saving time and at a price affordable by a critical mass in the city. The launch of helitaxii was a step in the direction of the long-term vision. For the longest time, the organisation catered only to the Business, Government and Political Segments. The organisation aimed to cater to the B2C (Business-to-Consumer) segment, providing accessibility of the benefits of helicopters to the common man.
The helitaxii model was tested successfully in different parts of the country with tweaks to the model. Joy rides were offered to end consumers in different parts of the country, such as Karnataka, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh, and Telangana. Aerial experience rides and Heli-skiing services were offered in Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand. Other offerings catered to were heli-weddings, flower drops, and so on.
As a socially responsible organisation, Thumby Aviation has undertaken several rescue missions, medical evacuations, organ transport for health emergencies and so on all over the country. Coming back to catering to the consumer segment, the largest and most recurring segment in the country is the religious pilgrimage segment.
Helicopter shuttle services were associated with the various authorised shrine boards and were taken up in Kedarnath, Mani Mahesh, and Amarnath. Also, Helicopter offered charter services to the sacred Chardham Yatra. This story is a journey from the IT hub in Bangalore to the peaks of the Himalayas. The pain points in this segment were very different from the previous experiences. Narrow roads, unsafe terrain, tedious travel time, and unavailability to source quality hospitality services all contribute to a diminishing spiritual experience. Read more on how this problem was solved- Chardham by Helicopter : Benefits of Helicopter Travel.
“The sacred Char Dham Yatra holds immense spiritual significance in the personal and cultural consciousness of pilgrims from across Bharat and the world over. Therefore, it becomes crucial for Yatris to choose the right mode of travel for the best experience. With years of experience and interacting with thousands of customers, we believe that the most preferred mode would be ‘Chardham by Helicopter‘,” said Govind. Before moving on, check out their packages, blogs, testimonials, clients, and gallery.
Looking forward to the future, Thumby Aviation aims to develop continuously operational air ambulances to take accident victims and patients to the nearest hospital in the golden hour to save lives. Also, the organisation is looking to solve several other mobility issues, such as traffic and connectivity in rural India, with the right balance of business development and social impact.
