Amazon delivery casts spotlight on drone viability

Last week’s delivery of a

four-pound package by

online business Amazon

Prime Air has once again

swung the spotlight on

UAVs (unmanned aerial

vehicles) and their potential

to carry freight.

While many new models

of electrically powered

UAVs have been developed,

improving the load carrying

capacity and range, the

question is whether we

are going to see the skies

buzzing with drones

delivering to our doorsteps.

Dan Wang, the content

marketing manager

of US-based freight

forwarder Flexport, looks

at the economics of ‘last

mile delivery’ – where

UAVs would typically

operate. “Drones have the

disadvantage that they

can, at present, deliver only

one parcel at a time to one

destination at a time – a

problem that road-going

delivery systems don’t have,”

he said.

Where UAV freight could

however come into its

own is in the transport of

urgently needed medical

samples, for example, and

delivery to areas where

there are no proper roads.

With the development of

GPS guidance, UAVs can

f ly to and from destinations

autonomously, which means

that there does not need

to be a highly paid pilot

controlling the machine

constantly.

However, industry

opinion is that it will be

some time before we see a

commercially viable UAVbased

delivery service – the

main hurdle being major

legal and safety obstacles

that need to be overcome.

For example, UAVs share the

airspace with conventional

aeroplanes, where a drone/

plane collision could spell

disaster.

In terms of South African

legislation, UAV pilots

need to be licensed to fly

UAVs. The South African

Civil Aviation Authority

(SACAA) is very concerned

about the number of illegal

UAVs operating in South

Africa. It estimates that

for every legal UAV in our

skies, there are three to four

illegal operators. Not only

do pilots of UAVs have to be

registered with the SACAA,

but they also have to be

properly insured.