Whoever coined the name “drone” for unmanned aerial vehicles must have skipped their marketing modules. Commercial applications for the technology, which is already used by the military, are growing rapidly. Transport and logistics are vying to become the biggest markets. There is little to quibble about the idea of fast, clean, congestion-reducing movement of goods and people. The downside is the noise.
Plans for drone delivery by ecommerce giant Amazon as part of its UK operation are stalling, according to news reports. Even so, mass deployment looms. UPS intends to use drones and larger electric aircraft for deliveries by 2024.
Specialist operators are lining up with logistics solutions. US company Zipline is already operating 1,000 drones and making parachute deliveries globally. A $250m funding round in June valued the group at nearly $3bn.