09 April 2025
Zipline — which, as we reported in 2022, has already made often-lifesaving medical deliveries in Africa — is bringing drone delivery to the Dallas-Fort Worth suburb of Mesquite, and, expected soon, Seattle.
Critically, given the miles that delivery drones must fly to complete their missions, Zipline was granted clearance for BVLOS (beyond visual line of sight) operations—the first commercial company to receive such approval. One of the reasons, Zipline's drones have been able to acquire FAA part 107, 108, and 135 classifications to do their work is partly due to sensors and safety. Zipline craft deploy FAA-required transponder data to navigate controlled airspace—such as around airports—as well as detection devices to automatically steer clear of other aircraft. In addition, onboard sensors help the drones avoid probelmatic weather by re-routing flight paths. They can even send weather reports back to the control center to update other drones about the situation.
Zipline's UAV—or UAVs, we shoud say—are unique. The design slated for Dallas is a drone within a drone. The Zipline P2 craft, which has five propellers, arrives at the delivery site and then releases a second, smaller drone called a Zip that is guided by a tether as it targets the final location. The P2 is capable of flying ten miles and can handle a cargo capacity of eight pounds.
Zipline also utilizes a P1 drone, a fixed-wing craft that can fly around 120 miles on a charge, and drops it cargo using a parachute.
Although drone deliveries may be the future, the business of enacting them has been fraught. A giant such as Amazon, for example, has had some misfires with its drone delivery initiatives, and temporarily paused its program last year, before resuming flights in Texas and Arizone.
However, if productivity is the key to eventual success, Zipline can boast it currently delivers thousands of packages per day. For its part, it's reported that Amazon's recent deliveries have totaled less than 10,000.
Stay tuned to The Droning Company to chart advancements and real-world successes in drone-delivery tech.
