Rudrapur, April 16 -- Helicopter services between Pantnagar and Almora began on Wednesday, providing faster connectivity between the two destinations in Kumaon region. The service will be operated by Pawan Hans with a helicopter capacity of 11 seats and will run six days a week. Inaugurating the service, Udham Singh Nagar district magistrate (DM) Nitin Bhadauria said the heli service will connect Pantnagar and Almora via Naukuchiatal in Nainital district. "The heli service will be very beneficial for people travelling by road and will help save time," the district magistrate said. Local MLA Shiv Arora said the service would greatly benefit residents of Almora and promote tourism in the Kumaon region. "Heli service will provide a reliable and relatively affordable air connectivity and will prove to be a milestone for civil aviation services in the future," Arora said. Officials said the helicopter service between Pantnagar Airport and Almora via Naukuchiatal will operate six days a week, except Sundays. Helicopter services are already available on routes connecting Dehradun, Haldwani and Pithoragarh, and the new route is expected to benefit both local residents and tourists. Pantnagar airport director Pawan Kumar said the service will improve connectivity for Almora residents to access flights operating from Pantnagar. "Once online booking becomes available, the heli service is expected to receive a good response," he said. Officials said the road journey between Almora and Pantnagar currently takes around four to five hours, while the helicopter service will reduce the travel time to about 30 minutes....