Global drone delivery news – mid July 2015
Drone delivery services continue to be hyped. Most are simply trials but they are worth paying attention to as they point to services that are not far off.
If you hear drone delivery you are most likely to think about Amazon. While Amazon’s efforts are the most well known there is are a constant supply of stories coming out daily on this topic.
Fastway Drone Delivery Trials taking place in New Zealand.
Fastway New Zealand undertook a trial of the collaborative service, using a Flirtey drone to transport auto parts 1.9 kilometres. The trial was deemed to be quite the success.
“We’re very impressed by the recent trial undertaken by our global counterparts in New Zealand,” Fastway Couriers Australia Chief Executive Officer Richard Thame said.
“We’re always exploring new and innovative ways to enhance the customer experience and, although there’s no substitute for courier drivers, drone technology is rapidly progressing and may present future opportunities for increasing speed of delivery, particularly in traffic congested areas.”
The trial, which you can see in the video below, found that using the drone to deliver the parts cut the route’s usual delivery time by a substantial amount. At final clock, the drone’s time from start to delivery came in at 4 minutes and 45 seconds, compared to the 18 minutes and 19 seconds taken by courier.
See it in action.
In other news…
A bakery in Somo, Spain, is hoping to eventually provide drone delivery of baked goods.
The article notes:
The delivery service would detect the location of a client and send their order out in a canvas bag attached to a drone.
But the bakery doesn’t yet have the go-ahead from the Spanish government to actually start the drone delivery service.
Laws restrict the private use of drones and bakery boss Enrique Colsa told The Local that the company will start the project once the restrictions have been lifted, which he hopes will be in September.
“When they allow us, we will do it, that is the plan,” said Albite. “And we will be the first in the world to do it.”
There are many other stories about drone delivery flying around the web. We will keep you updated as we talk to individuals involved.
