F.A.A. Allows U.P.S. to Deliver Medical Packages Using Drones

[BumRushDaShow]

Source: New York Times




United Parcel Service announced this week that it had received a certification from the Federal Aviation Administration to use drones to deliver medical packages at campuses across the country. The certification will allow U.P.S. to use multiple drones to deliver health care supplies within federal regulations and to fly drones beyond the visual line of sight, according to a statement from the F.A.A.

For the past year, U.P.S. has been collaborating with the F.A.A. flying drones at the WakeMed campus in Raleigh, N.C., delivering medical packages — including blood samples and tissues — to different buildings on the property, according to Scott Price, the chief strategy and transformation officer at U.P.S. During its yearlong trial period, he said, U.P.S. flew about 1,000 single-operator drone flights at the WakeMed campus.

While U.P.S.’s drone airline, UPS Flight Forward, is currently limited by the certification to operating on medical campuses for the next couple of years, the company hopes to expand after that. “This is the first step to being able to enable deliveries to homes and rural areas,” Mr. Price said on Wednesday.

The F.A.A. certification for U.P.S.’s drone airline comes at a time when the United States is making a push to remain at the forefront of unmanned aviation, the agency said. “This is a big step forward in safely integrating unmanned aircraft systems into our airspace,” said Elaine L. Chao, the United States secretary of transportation.

Read more: https://www.nytimes.com/2019/10/02/us/UPS-drone-deliveries.html

[bucolic_frolic]

1. I guess I should be ecstatic - it uses less energy than a big brown truck

but I think it's about getting us to consume more, and what happened to the UPS man?

[BumRushDaShow]

2. Yup - "automation" gets rid of the driver and the truck

But then there are other things like eaves-dropping drones.

I really really really don't want those damn things flying through the air!

I have seen the usefulness of them in rural areas and in areas inaccessible to humans - notably for search/rescue, but any other use raises a big red flag.

[eppur_se_muova]

7. If you're delivering only one package, it uses less energy.

If you're delivering a hundred packages in one vehicle, the cost per ton/mile drops considerably. That's why freight trains are still a thing.

[BumRushDaShow]

11. Good point

And it's also why huge barges and merchant ships that travel on water are still the original (large transport) "thing" and why even when transport is done over land or in the air, it is still called "shipping"!!!

[not fooled]

3. Camel's nose under the tent

Who could argue with using drones to deliver lifesaving medical supplies?

Of course, in a few years when the UPS drivers are replaced and the suicides escalate, the brutal face of capitalism will be revealed.

They can't wait to get rid of as many workers as possible.

And no, I'm neither against progress nor longing to return to the days of buggy whips. But the next big revolution whereby workers are replaced by AI will be brutal.

[appalachiablue]

9. +1 'Don't try to obstuct progress or be a downer' by focusing on

mere humans/workers, pfft! The tragedy of AI replacement will ensue on a mass scale in the coming years..

[LastLiberal in PalmSprings]

4. WCGW?

(What could go wrong?)

Effects of one drone spotted in Gatwick Airport (U.K) airspace:

No more problems!

https://www.popularmechanics.com/flight/drones/news/g3124/15-drone-crashes-buildings/

Good luck, UPS!

[BumRushDaShow]

5. That first one has some good

Wiley E. Coyote-style smash scenes!

[Happy Hoosier]

15. Now post a montage of car crashes!!!

Seriously... this is a LITTLE bit of cherry picking, doncha think?

[Baclava]

16. Nice! as a proud drone owner myself all I can say is, if it goes up, it must come down, lol

hey Luddites, so not every landing is perfect, we have replaceable parts, we can fix it!

On a really calm morning I've been known to take off and land one from my kayak, no mad skillz needed, lol

[LisaM]

17. Somehow drones and kayaks don't go together for me.

If I was out on or near the water in total quiet, I don't really want a drone overhead (even if hidden), and I really don't want to see one landing nearby.

[Baclava]

18. I dont go flying when the public is around, lol, i can choose secluded areas where there's nobody

Its all about the flying HD camera that makes it worth it, we are all movie makers now, would be science fiction stuff 20 years ago!

[miyazaki]

19. That chimp was like King Kong

[Rebl2]

6. No

Just no!

[Crowman2009]

10. Of course somebody with a pellet gun would obtain said medical supplies.

Then there's the power lines, collisions with other drones, and on rare occasions...wild animals.

[BumRushDaShow]

12. THAT is one of the big problems

They can become targets of bullets and large raptors (eagles, hawks, falcons, etc). I can imagine what might happen if any fly near a wind turbine.

[Crowman2009]

13. Here's a few examples, and not just birds or prey either.

I forgot about flocks of pigeons and geese as well.

[BumRushDaShow]

14. OMG forgot about those damn Canada geese!

[LastLiberal in PalmSprings]

20. They're actually the Canadian Air Force.

"We always get our drone."

[BumRushDaShow]

21. LOL

Don't let a family of them start crossing the street. It's guaranteed the whole flock will immediately join them!