Volansi Inc, the California-based cargo drone delivery service provider developing autonomous VTOL UAVs, announced this week, it has signed a partnership agreement with the N.C. Department of Transportation (NCDT) to begin commercial, middle-mile, drone delivery projects in North Carolina, reports suasnews.com.
Volansi and the NCDT will work together with the FAA, to gather data on drone delivery programs and how they could be incorporated long-term into the current transportation infrastructure and regulations.
Hannan Parvizian, CEO and Co-Founder of Volansi, commented, “We believe that one day, autonomous flight will be as commonplace and accessible as mailing a letter, and Volansi technology will play a pivotal part in this transport revolution.”
The company will initially perform tests and VLOS cargo delivery flights under Part 107 as part of the UAS Integration Pilot Program (IPP) in North Carolina, with the intent to scale to more projects with additional waivers and permissions with the support of the N.C. Department of Transportation and the FAA.
Projects will initially utilise the VOLY C10- Gen 2, all-electric, hybrid VTOL fixed-wing UAV. This enables Volansi’s drones to complete complex, two-way missions with minimal to zero infrastructure needs. Because the craft fully land at the delivery point, they can deliver and return cargo such as samples for analysis and diagnosis, or parts for repair.
The drone flies autonomously and can carry up to 10lb of cargo over 50 miles. Volansi’s in-house Operations Team handles all aspects of the VOLY C10 providing an end-to-end delivery service to customers. VOLY C10 aircraft have already performed operations in Africa, the Carribean, and in the United States.
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