History was made a few days ago when a drone operated by Flirtey became the first ever FAA approved delivery in the United States.
The drone picked up medical supplies from a regional airport in Virginia before flying over rural terrain and eventually dropping the supplies down to a medical clinic in Wise, Virginia.
Matthew Sweeney, Flirtey’s co-founder and CEO, said, “In this area, we had 3,000 people camping out for medical care in cars, blocking single-lane roads on the way to the medical clinic.” The supplies are typically delivered by car, a 90-minute drive over bumpy, often broken down roads. “In circumstances with traffic congestion like this, or over rugged terrain, or in emergency scenarios like Katrina, drone delivery provides the fastest and most reliable method of delivery of emergency supplies.”
“It’s just a question of how long until the FAA allows operations over populated areas,” added Sweeney. “I think it’s likely within two years.”
