Retailers trial drone deliveries

Small scale trials part of growing momentum behind drone deliveries

Image by S. Hermann & F. Richter from Pixabay

Walmart in the USA and Tesco in the UK are both trialling drone deliveries, reports Logistics Viewpoint.

Walmart will be trialling the delivery products in Fayetteville, NC, in partnership with Flytrex. 

The company had already announced a partnership with Zipline to delivery select health and well-being products in Northwest Arkansas from early 2021.

Close to Walmart’s headquarters, Zipline will work within a 50-mile radius. Zipline launched a drone service in 2016 in Rwanda, to deliver medical supplies.

Tesco, the UK’s largest retailer, announced a home delivery trial for grocery items in Ireland, partnering with Manna, which already has a license to operate there.

Manna currently delivers from restaurants and centralised kitchens to consumers’ homes. Flying at an altitude of 80 metres and at speeds of over 80kph, the drones deliver with in a 2km radius in less than three minutes.

Initially, the programme will focus on a select number of grocery items, such as forgotten recipe items, making deliveries between 30 and 60 minutes of being processed.

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