Express delivery company, DHL is launching helicopter services to beat London's traffic jams.

The company is targeting UK-based banks with the service, which guarantees next-day document delivery from US financial centres.

Time difference

The helicopter service flies from London Heathrow Airport to the city's main financial district, Canary Wharf.

The airport is located west of London while Canary Wharf is in East London. It routinely takes two hours to make the journey from one to the other location by road. The helicopter flight takes just 20 minutes.

Overnight guarantee

Critically, DHL says the time difference will allow them to guarantee overnight delivery from US financial centres.

European chief executive of DHL, John Pearson, says the company had received several requests for this service from existing customers, many of whom are in the financial industry.

Frankfurt and Paris

"This is not a marketing gimmick," he said. "Cutting the travel time from the airport translates into a full day's saving. A document can be sent from Chicago and be in London by 2pm the next day.

DHL is preparing to launch a similar service in Chicago in the next few weeks and is considering following suit in Frankfurt and Paris.

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