Trial runs for delivering vaccines by drones kicks off tomorrow

NEW DELHI: Telangana will from Thursday start a trial run for delivering vaccines by drones, eventually paving the way for taking this route to healthcare centres in remote parts of the country. Delhi-based drone delivery tech firm Skye Air Mobility has tied up with Blue Dart to initiate a three-phase trial for the Telangana government that starts with flying drones, each carrying 175 vaccines in a temperature-controlled, first within line of sight and then beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS). Being a trial run, the vaccines being delivered initially will not be the precious Covid jabs but others, the company says.
On Thursday, boxes weighing 2-3 kg will take off from Vikarabad District hospital for 500-metre-away primary health care centres, flying to an altitude of upto 400 feet. “This is among the first trials to deliver jabs by drones and different corridors have been identified for the purpose. We on Thursday start with within line of sight that will cover a distance of upto…