SpiceJet plans to use drones for delivering essentials & Ecommerce in Remote Areas

New Delhi: SpiceJet plans to use drones for faster delivery of medical, essential and e-commerce supplies in remote areas of the country. The budget airline has got Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) nod to conduct drone trials. A consortium led by SpiceJet’s freighter arm, SpiceXpress, had submitted a proposal to the regulator for conducting experimental “beyond visual line of sight” (BVLOS) operations of remotely piloted aircraft in response to a DGCA expression of interest.

SpiceJet CMD Ajay Singh said: “Testing of drone technology for last mile connectivity and cost-effective cargo deliveries are a big leap in the air transportation of essential and non-essential supplies in India. We are extremely optimistic about using this exciting new mode of delivery for products like perishables and medicines which have a smaller shelf-life and need urgent deliveries in the remotest parts of India.”

The consortium includes Throttle Aerospace, a drone manufacturing company, AeoLogic, an analytics and software solution firm and Involia, which is a provider of air traffic awareness and collision avoidance services.

“SpiceXpress will be looking at last-mile delivery from the warehouse and the prime focus will be on delivering medical emergency parcels and essential supplies in remote areas. Drones will ensure a faster delivery bringing down costs and would go a long way to augment our business to offer express delivery of medicines, perishable items and e-commerce shipments,” the airline said in a statement.