Aerial transport services company Drone Delivery Canada says it has successfully completed test flights of its Canary UAV in commercial operation conditions, verifying the craft’s enhancements over the firm’s earlier Sparrow vehicle.
A total of three trial flights of the sub-25-kilogram Canary were carried out in live conditions, with Drone Delivery Canada reporting the craft completed its missions in less time, and using fewer battery resources, than a Sparrow traveling the same routes. The company noted that in additional to fulfilling in-house performance objectives, the trio of outings were “completed in accordance with the Canadian Aviation Regulations.”
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Successful testing of Canary takes Drone Delivery Canada a step closer to the eventual launch of full-scale operation for clients. By demonstrating its improved capacities – including flight in windy conditions that Sparrow UAVs would not have been able to negotiate – the company has shown its tech is prepared for the big time, and just waiting for regulations to catch up to enable wide-scale activity.
Indeed, the trials of Canary came less than two months after Drone Delivery Canada received approval from Transport Canada to conduct beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) flights of dangerous goods as part of its Care by Air program. That project uses a designated 13.4-kilometer corridor to transport medicines, urgent supplies, and samples between Toronto-area hospitals and clinics.
Read more: Drone Delivery Canada gets BVLOS approval for medical flights
In adopting that route for its triple flight program, Canary completed its missions in 9% less time, using 42% less batteries, and created 46% lower noise output than its Sparrow predecessor.
Moreover, Drone Delivery Canada says the newer UAV – which boasts a 4.5-kilogram payload maximum, and an over 20-kilometer flight capacity – will slash energy consumption and time needed in comparable operations by nearly half, thanks in part to safety features permitting it to fly more direct paths over people other craft cannot.
“The successful commercial flights of the Canary on the Care by Air route mark a significant milestone for our company and the drone delivery industry as a whole,” said Steve Magirias, CEO of Drone Delivery Canada. “We are incredibly proud of our team’s dedication and innovation, which has allowed us to push the boundaries of what’s possible in the realm of drone logistics. The Canary’s impressive performance demonstrates its immense potential to revolutionize healthcare supply chains and make a tangible difference in people’s lives.”
Drone Delivery Canada operates using a combination of proprietary software and cutting-edge hardware, and makes those assets available to government and global corporate organizations as models of Software as a Service activities.
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