2 days ago
Startup demonstrates delivery of goods by large cargo in Tiruchi school
A large drone with a payload capacity of 6 kg, brought chocolates to a delighted audience of onlookers as it made a sortie during a demonstration organised at a city school on Saturday, heralding the evolution of aerial cargo delivery with a lower carbon footprint.
The drone is said to be the largest of its kind in terms of payload capacity, and is launched by Amber Wings, an entity of The ePlane Company, the start-up incubated by the Indian Institute of Technology – Madras. The demonstration was part of the school's 'Role of Engineering in India's Growth and Development' programme.
'The day is not far when Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVLOS) drone flights will be technologically enabled to be operated routinely without any fear of security breaches. Once this happens, drone deliveries in Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities will become commonplace, because these areas would constitute 'green zones' where they are permitted to fly,' Satyanarayanan R. Chakravarthy, founder of The ePlane Company and professor of Aerospace Engineering, IIT-M, told The Hindu. The academician is co-founder of Agnikul Cosmos.
Mr. Chakravarthy said that drone applications in the civilian space for deliveries of essential commodities as well as e-commerce cargo are a growing field, especially in India. The company had debuted the 'Atva' Vertical Take off and Landing (VTOL) drone in 2023, with a 2 kg payload capacity, and 10,000 km of flights.
'This is the first time that we are bringing our larger model out of its laboratory conditions. It is still a prototype that has been in development for the past six months. We are all excited to see it perform well in an open setting,' said Mr. Chakravarthy.
At yesterday's demonstration, all eyes were on the drone as it soared high with a speed of 100 km and passed a real bird in the sky without incident. The drone is powered by an onboard battery.
Santhanam Vidyalaya chief executive officer K. Chandrasekharan spoke.
