Drone Delivery in India – Sooner Than You Think

The Union Government has begun the process of granting regulatory permissions to the operation of drones for commercial purposes, during the lockdown. Thirteen consortia have received permission to conduct trials for their drones and submit proof of concept to the DGCA, but when will we see them in operation? Read on to find out.

The Government had constituted a committee last year to look into the issues of BVLOS (Beyond Visual Line Of Sight) drones for commercial operations. These drones are quite different from the toy shop hobby quadcopters. They are heavier and will be used primarily to deliver objects such as medicines or grocery. In the time of social distancing, this acquires an altogether different level of importance. These drones also have a much longer range and that’s why they need to be beyond visual line of sight, to be commercially viable.

The biggest concern of the Government though has been around the safety of operating such drones. These concerns include the flying altitude, distance from airports and sensitive locations. And the protocol to be put in place, in case the drone either has a technical malfunction or loses contact with the master control centre. This is particularly important since some of the craft that is to be tested has a range of up to 10 km, that will be primarily used for deliveries within urban areas. These drones weigh about 11kgs and can carry a parcel of up to 5 kgs. Apart from the placing of the package in the delivery box, everything else will be without human interface say the operators.

Ankit Kumar, Managing Partner, Alternative Global India, a Gurgaon based consulting firm that works with the Dunzo backed consortium cleared for trials says, “Technology-wise the systems are available. The regulatory aspects are where we were seeing a cautious approach. We believe the Government is serious about this sector. We expect that by mid next year delivery will start through BVLOS drones. The first consortium to begin trials will be the Dunzo consortium that will begin trials by July 15.”

These consortia have until September 30 to finish trials. They will then have to give a detailed report of the safety measures adopted and the proof of concept. Some of the safety measures include designated landing spaces across cities in case of mechanical or electrical malfunction. In case of serious malfunctions where the drone can’t make it to a safe landing zone, there would be parachutes deployed automatically so that the drone comes down safely and does not cause any damage on the descent.

This is also why the drone companies are also hoping 5G data comes in soon as they would be completely dependent on telecom networks for their connectivity with their control centre. Flying at about 300 ft the drones would have good signals in cities but for expansion to rural areas where signal strength is not strong and data upload becomes challenging, 5G networks become more essential.

The post-trial evaluation Government sources say, will lead to the announcement of an Unmanned Traffic Management (UTM) policy, which will be a big addition to the digital sky policy announced in 2018. This policy will be akin to having an ATC for drones so that they don’t collide midair and the drone traffic can be managed. This UTM policy is expected by April and within a quarter, if all goes well, we may see the first drones flying out for delivery in July next year.

Some states have also started drawing up ambitious plans with fixed-wing aircraft for delivery of medicines and for carrying diagnostic samples in remote areas, where medical or testing facilities may be inadequate.

Delivery companies say that they have over the past 5 years, reduced the cost per delivery from 90 Rs per delivery to 42 Rs today. The only way delivery companies believe that can further reduce these delivery costs is by employing drones which will do so for an estimated 20 – 25 Rs per delivery. It’s therefore, not surprising that delivery-focused companies such as Dunzo and Zomato are among the consortia cleared for trials.

Interestingly, it is not just the newer tech-oriented delivery companies but also traditional aviation companies that are interested in this sector. Spicejet is among the consortia that received clearance for trials. The Airline plans to use drones for faster & cost-effective delivery of medical & essential supplies & e-commerce through SpiceXpress its dedicated cargo arm. It says that drones will also help in the delivery of essential supplies to remote areas.

According to Ajay Singh, Chairman & Managing Director, SpiceJet, “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.”

Globally, apart from India most other countries such as the US and UK are engaged in the technical evaluation and regulatory trial stage for drone delivery. UPS in the US, Google wing in Australia are some of those engaged in this sector. China, however, has begun commercial operations with an estimated 5000 commercial flights completed. The next phase of the evolution of drones beyond delivery would be urban air mobility with Uber Elevate expected to conduct trials in Mumbai by 2023.

List of 13 Consortia that have permission for experimental BVLOS Drone Operations

1) Aerospace Industry Development Association of Tamil Nadu (AIDAT)

2) ANRA Consortium A.

3) ANRA Consortium B

4) Asteria Aerospace Pvt. Ltd.

5) ClearSky Flight Consortium

6) Dhaksha Unmanned Systems Pvt. Ltd.

7) Dunzo Air Consortium

8) Sagar Defence Engineering Pvt. Ltd.

9) Saubika Consortium

10) ShopX Omnipresent Consortium

11) Spicejet Ltd.

12) Throttle Aerospace Systems Pvt. Ltd.

13) Value Thought IT Solutions Pvt. Ltd.

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Source: ToI

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