Consultant’s Insight: Last-mile delivery by drones on the rise

The number of packages delivered by drone increased by more than 80% from 2021 to 2022, reaching almost 875,000 deliveries worldwide, according to consulting firm McKinsey . [caption id="attachment_76185" align="alignright" width="298"] Cathy Roberson, Cargo Facts Consulting senior consultant and Air Cargo Next columnist[/caption] That number is expected to have grown even more in 2023 and to continue to grow in 2024, thanks partly to a September ruling from the FAA . The FAA ruling approves beyond-visual-line-of-sight (BVLOS) operations under specific conditions and geographic locations. Zipline , UPS Flight Forward , Phoenix Air Unmanned and uAvionix were the first four drone delivery companies to receive BVLOS permissions. Walmart partner DroneUp joined the group in January. Air Cargo Next ’s free webinar “The Role of Drones in the Future of Air Cargo,” which will livestream Tuesday, March 26, at 11 a.m. ET, will discuss the regulations and technologies needed to enable drone delivery advancements. Register here . Walmart expands drone ops Walmart plans to expand its last-mile drone deliveries by making them available to about 75% of households in Dallas and Fort Worth, Texas, by the end of the year. “We already offer express delivery in the U.S., where customers can get their orders delivered fast,” Walmart Chief Executive Doug McMillon told analysts on a Feb. 20 earnings call. “But what if you need something faster? There’s a pot of chili on the stove and you realize you forgot chili seasoning. Drone delivery can get it to you in 15 minutes or less. “Delivering by drone isn’t new to us. Over the last two years, we’ve operated 37 hubs across seven states, completing 20,000 deliveries.” Walmart partners with four drone delivery companies: DroneUp; Flytrex ; Wing ; and Zipline. Amazon’s drone plans Since announcing its drone plans in 2013, Amazon has fallen behind rivals Walmart and UPS in its drone delivery implementation. But that may change as Amazon plans to expand its drone delivery operations beyond the two U.S. communities in which it currently operates: Lockeford, Calif., and College Station , Texas. Amazon plans to add a third U.S. site, as well as a site each in Italy and the United Kingdom, by yearend. “We have refined the technology and are now building the right infrastructure to ensure the service provides the ultimate convenience for our customers,” an Amazon blog post stated. Indeed, Amazon has developed a smaller, quieter delivery drone, MK30, that can fly twice as far as previous Prime Air drone models and can deliver to customers living farther out from Amazon fulfillment networks. The MK30 can also fly in more diverse weather conditions. The new drone will debut in College Station this summer, pending FAA approval. Amazon will further set itself apart from its competitors with its plan to integrate drones into its delivery network, so that traditional delivery vans, Flex delivery vehicles and Prime Air drones all leave from the same fulfillment centers. Currently, the company uses standalone Prime Air delivery centers. In addition, pending approval from the FAA, Amazon plans to increase its drone delivery capacity from 200 to 470 operations a day. Register here for Air Cargo Next ’s free webinar, “The Role of Drones in the Future of Air Cargo,” on Tuesday, March 26, at 11 a.m. ET.

Consultant’s Insight: Last-mile delivery by drones on the rise

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