It is projected that autonomous drones will be used for last-mile delivery system in Dubai next year to make it faster and more convenient for consumers.

Visitors at the recent Gitex Global 2023 were given a glimpse how this can happen. They placed orders for meals and drinks and they were delivered under four minutes at the kiosk which served as the landing port.

The pilot project was demonstrated by Dubai-based FEDS Drone-powered Solutions (FEDS) and Chinese company Meituan UAS (Unmanned Aircraft Systems).

Faster alternative

Speaking to Khaleej Times, Rabih Bou Rached, founder and CEO of FEDS, said “drone delivery is a better alternative to human delivery as it is faster because there is no traffic in the air and the order will come quicker.”

Full scale and citywide operation is expected to happen in the next two years, according to Rached, but a pilot test area in a residential community with low rise buildings will be operational by next year.

Rached noted drone delivery system is already used in three major cities in China in the last two years. The setup at Gitex Global was based on Meituan UAS’ services in China. A pick-up kiosk (landing port) was set-up at the parking area of Dubai Word Trade Centre and the drone operated on a predetermined route from a launchpad to a kiosk, making it safe and easy to navigate.

Initially, Rached said, between 10 and 20 drones will be deployed for the trial period but soon, hundreds of drones can be used for Dubai-wide operation.

Drone specifications

The drone has six rotors. Its size is 1370 X 1370 X 450 mm. It can carry up to 2.5kgs of payload, enough to carry a family-size pizza. Its communication system runs on 5G or 4G and WiFi and it can travel within a 10-km radius.

Its climbing velocity is up to 10 metres per second and can descend up to 6 metres/ second. Its maximum obstacle perception distance is 50 metres forward and 15 metres upward.

The drone can operate in moderate rain and in temperature between -20 degrees Celsius and 60 degrees Celsius.

The drone works in tandem with a landing port that can be flexibly deployed in various places such as events like Gitex Global or offices, residential and commercial areas.

According to Rached, the first step is to a get a certification for BVLOS (beyond visual line of sight) for the operation of drones at distances outside the normal visible range of the (human) pilot.

He noted Meituan UAS started working on drone delivery solutions in 2017, with a focus to provide services in 15 minutes for users within a radius of three kilometres. “The company is now a leading provider of drone delivery services and has been operating in three cities in China since 2021, with over 184,000 successful deliveries of meals, drinks and other daily necessities to customers as of August 2023,” he added.

Dubai is ready

Meanwhile, Dubai Municipality (DM) has confirmed at Gitex Global that it is actively working to map the airspace in the city to plan routes and landing locations for drones. It has already completed the exercise in Dubai Silicon Oasis and now plans to do the same for the entire city.

Wesam Lootah, CEO of Corporate Support Services Sector at DM, said: "We are doing 3D zoning of the airspace and building airways. This will help to accelerate the adoption of drones in many aspects."

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