Simultaneous Long Distance Delivery Performed with Two Drones

By Mike Ball / 09 Dec 2020
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Pablo Air delivery drone

Pablo Air has performed simultaneous delivery of medical supplies with two drones from Incheon New Port in mainland Korea to Yeongheungdo Island and Jawoldo Island. The journeys were 50 mile round trips taking an hour and 20 minutes.

This test marks the longest drone flight ever performed in Korea, and used vertical takeoff-and-landing (VTOL) unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) that were operated with an independently-developed, web-based control system.

To ensure flight safety, both drones were simultaneously monitored with three different communications technologies (LTE, satellite, RF wireless). This allowed the aircraft to be monitored via computer, tablet PC, and mobile phone, making constant tracking possible regardless of location.

The flight was part of an unmanned delivery project funded by Incheon Metropolitan City and Incheon Technopark. The demonstration was viewed by representatives from the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport; Incheon Metropolitan City; Incheon Technopark; Incheon Port Authority; Korea Institute of Aviation Safety Technology; Incheon Industry Academy Collaboration Institute; and Jeyang Logistics.

Pablo Air previously completed a 35.7-mile drone flight from Jejudo’s Seogwipo Port to Udo Port in one hour and 56 minutes, which at the time was also the longest drone delivery flight in Korea. The company is leading development of an UAM PAV (Urban Air Mobility Personal Air Vehicle) market of the future by also engaging in non-delivery projects, such as an “art show” by a group of 300 drones.

Kim Young-jun, CEO of Pablo Air, commented: “Drone technology will create significant added value in the future of delivery shipping and bring greater convenience for users. The era of drone-shipped deliveries is fast approaching, which means we have to concentrate not only on developing safer, more precise technologies but also on entering foreign markets in 2021, using our unparalleled skill set. We will be collaborating with a variety of distribution companies worldwide in the coming years.”

Posted by Mike Ball Mike Ball is our resident technical editor here at Unmanned Systems Technology. Combining his passion for teaching, advanced engineering and all things unmanned, Mike keeps a watchful eye over everything related to the unmanned technical sector. With over 10 years’ experience in the unmanned field and a degree in engineering, Mike’s been heading up our technical team here for the last 8 years. Connect & Contact