DHL’s new helicopter service takes to the air in Chicago

DHL has launched a new helicopter service in Chicago to provide early morning delivery services for the area’s financial and legal firms requiring urgent document delivery. The company has been offering helicopter deliveries in New York for many years and introduced the service in Los Angeles in 2014 and in London in January this year.

The DHL helicopter, a Bell 206B3 Jet Ranger, is operated for DHL by Helimotion of Joliet, Illinois, and can transport up to 650 pounds of letters and packages.

International shipments destined for Chicago enter the United States for processing at the DHL Americas Hub in Cincinnati before connecting to a flight bound for the Chicago O’Hare International Airport. Shipments are then separated, loaded into the DHL helicopter and transported to the new Vertiport Chicago in the Illinois Medical District. From there, a DHL courier meets the helicopter and provides the final mile delivery.

“We have received tremendous customer feedback on our helicopter service in both New York and L.A., so it seemed natural that we would bring this innovative delivery method to Chicago, which also is a bustling financial epicenter,” said Mike Parra, CEO of DHL Express U.S. “While we have always excelled at making deliveries with speed and reliability, our helicopter service provides additional assurance that shipments will meet their early morning deadlines.”

DHL Express said that it is currently the only express delivery company in the United States using helicopters for deliveries.