The European Union just approved a pilotless cargo aircraft to transport freight the size of a delivery van. As its manufacturer aims to debut this drone in 2023, this would be the first "cargo drone airline" in the world.
TOPSHOT - A drone pilot ties up a bag of food to a drone at Cala Tadira near Sant Josep de Sa Talaia in Ibiza Island on August 24, 2021. Drone to Yacht is an exclusive delivery service for yachts launched in Ibiza by the restaurant Can Yucas and the Galician company Aerocamaras to deliver food and drinks to yachts.
JAIME REINA/AFP via Getty Images
(Photo : JAIME REINA/AFP via Getty Images) TOPSHOT - A drone pilot ties up a bag of food to a drone at Cala Tadira near Sant Josep de Sa Talaia in Ibiza Island on August 24, 2021. Drone to Yacht is an exclusive delivery service for yachts launched in Ibiza by the restaurant Can Yucas and the Galician company Aerocamaras to deliver food and drinks to yachts.
Black Swan Drone to Debut in 2023
Dronamics gets ready for its manufactured drone to hit the market next year, as Black Swan drones have been approved by the European Union to transport freight. According to Interesting Engineering, this will operate in 2023.
Compared to competing aircraft, the costs for pilotless cargo drones are 50% lower with a 770-pound payload and a 1550-mile range. Once the manufacturers start operating this, it would be the world's first cargo drone airline.
Black Swan can cover the continental of the United States, the diagonal in the Caribbean, the South China Sea, and all of the countries in Europe. Basically, the drone fits neatly into the global geography.
The aircraft was supported by 3,000 airstrips from Europe that are closer to consumers than the distribution centers of the drone airline company.
Because of this, Black Swan will provide consumers with a much quicker shipment but at the same time not as expensive as other couriers. Same-day deliveries are also possible because of its fast shipment process.
Aside from its capabilities, manufacturers Konstantin and Svilen Rangelov stated that the drone design sets the company apart from other operators that offer the same size. "Most small delivery drones are an attempt to solve the last-mile problem. They are the bike messenger, we are the cross country truck," they added.
Manufacturing the Drone
This project started back in 2013 when the two brothers researched and experimented on making Black Swan. Both were inspired by Amazon's drone deliveries and how it is logistically challenging, as the retail company uses small drones to carry goods directly to houses.
Business Insider reported that typically in Bulgaria, a cargo is usually flown into Sofia, offloaded onto a big truck, driven a hundred miles, offloaded again into a smaller van, and delivered to individual sites.
Rangelov added, "We said let's map the size of the vehicle to fit exactly what you can fit in a delivery van in the last mile. This way, we get to cut a step from the process."
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Carbon Fiber Structure
Compared to rival cargo planes, Black Swan may have a reduced price up to 50% as it includes a carbon fiber structure. This can go 2,500 kilometers in one flight and cruise at 20,000 feet, as per Dronamic's site.
This will be powered entirely by sustainable aviation fuel, making it the fastest and greenest process of transporting freight as it results in emissions 60% lower than other couriers.
Black Swan will begin flights over water and in the Mediterranean including Greece or Cyprus.
