Calcutta cut a pretty picture from a helicopter on Sunday morning as it flew over the stately Victoria Memorial, the monsoon-green Maidan, vessels floating down the Hooghly and the two iconic bridges across it to mark the inauguration of a joyride.

The price of an aerial eyeful? Rs 1,700 for 10 minutes. But representatives of Pawan Hans, which will operate the service, could not say when people will be able to buy tickets and hop on board.

The twin-engine, 11-seater Dolphin chopper, manufactured by the France-based Eurocopter, took off from the helipad at the Royal Calcutta Turf Club on Sunday and headed towards Chowringhee.

“This part of the town looks breathtaking with high-rise buildings and the long AJC Bose Road flyover. It’s only from the air that you realise the Eden Gardens is actually on the Hooghly,” said one of the bureaucrats who were in the chopper with transport and sports minister Madan Mitra, chief secretary Sanjay Mitra and police commissioner Surajit Kar Purkayastha.

Sanjay Kumar, general manager (marketing), Pawan Hans, said the chopper would be used to reach help to the districts in an emergency.

“We the government representatives took the ride to check the safety and security issues and are quite satisfied. The noise inside was minimal and the experience was enjoyable,” said Mitra.

The minister added that it was evident from the sky there was very little unoccupied space in the residential areas.

The service is part of a plan to connect Calcutta with the districts using choppers, seaplanes and fixed-wing planes, as envisaged in an MoU signed between Pawan Hans, a public sector company, and the state government.

The services will promote business and tourism, improve communication, and help in evacuation, chief minister Mamata Banerjee had written on Facebook after signing the MoU.

Mitra also said the operator would start finalising landing strips for the chopper in Digha, Haldia and Siliguri from Monday. “To make helicopter trips to these places viable, we need passengers. At this moment, it seems Calcutta does not have the potential,” said a city-based tour operator.