UPS Is Launching a Drone Delivery Service In the US (qz.com) 27
The United Parcel Service (UPS) announced it has submitted an application to the FAA to operate commercial delivery drones in the U.S., through a new subsidiary called UPS Flight Forward. Quartz reports: The company has been working closely with the FAA over the last year; in 2018, the agency launched a program to test out drones in a range of autonomous flying situations, and UPS was one of the accepted applicants. It's been couriering lab samples around the WakeMed hospital campus in Raleigh, North Carolina, in partnership with the drone startup Matternet. Bala Ganesh, head of UPS's advanced technology group, says that once the FAA has certified the new company, it plans to build upon the work it's been doing in healthcare deliveries.
UPS is hoping to get its certification later this year, at which point Ganesh says the company will expand its drone activities in three ways. First, it wants to replicate the work it's done at WakeMed at other large medical facilities that need lab work ferried around as quickly as possible. It then wants to begin flying farther, using autonomous drones to potentially fly between five and ten miles from their point of origin. (Right now, most drone operations in the US need to be conducted within the line of sight of a pilot.) After that's been mastered, UPS wants to fly its drones at night. UPS doesn't plan, at least for the near future, to offer drone deliveries to regular customers, so don't expect to be getting your next online order delivered to your house by drone. For now, it's concentrating on small payloads for healthcare
UPS is hoping to get its certification later this year, at which point Ganesh says the company will expand its drone activities in three ways. First, it wants to replicate the work it's done at WakeMed at other large medical facilities that need lab work ferried around as quickly as possible. It then wants to begin flying farther, using autonomous drones to potentially fly between five and ten miles from their point of origin. (Right now, most drone operations in the US need to be conducted within the line of sight of a pilot.) After that's been mastered, UPS wants to fly its drones at night. UPS doesn't plan, at least for the near future, to offer drone deliveries to regular customers, so don't expect to be getting your next online order delivered to your house by drone. For now, it's concentrating on small payloads for healthcare
"Launch" (Score:2, Funny)
Get it? It's a pun.
Because drones fly.
So hilarious.
Re: (Score:2)
1st Person (Score:3)
To loose an eyeball to one of those drones that throws a prop at just the wrong time is gonna put the hurt on these types of operations.
As someone who has flown a lot of RC aircraft I can assure you they fail a LOT. Props break, servos fails, speed controllers go whacky, motors seize, glue points fail.
Drone deliveries are a disaster just waiting to happen for some unlucky company..
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Drone deliveries are a disaster just waiting to happen for some unlucky company..
That's why they're called Ups! It's the sound their drivers make everytime they drop a package- or now everytime their drone operators fly a prop into someones eye they will say "Ups!"
the union will make it hard for them to cut jobs! (Score:2)
the union will make it hard for them to cut jobs!
As long as it's flying over someone else's house! (Score:1)
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What height do the drones fly at? I don't want drones flying over my house day an night if I can hear them.
Maybe they need a certified flight-zone that's reserved at the bottom of commercial airspace for ~50 metres.
To be fair, I imagine the drones make less noise than the delivery trucks currently do.
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Airplanes normally operate at 500+ feet. Drones normally operate below this. I'd choose to operate between 200 and 400 feet so as to stay between trees and airplanes.
No, they're not. (Score:3)
They're applying for permits that allow them to conduct further testing. Their test sites will be selected with extreme care and prejudice.
This is nothing like "launching" a regular service with a company where a significant portion of the customer base will get access to said service.