Elsight Limited (ASX: ELS) announced that Elsight’s Halo has been incorporated into drones participating in the NAAMA Hadera Initiative, a global collaboration that demonstrates the reality of urban drone delivery. (Don’t miss the incredible video about the NAAMA Hadera Initiative embedded below!)
The NAAMA Hadera initiative was an amazing demonstration of package delivery by drones, beyond line of sight (BVLOS) and in a crowded urban setting. Under observation of global players from the UTM and drone industries, the cooperation carried out more than 4,000 drone delivery flights. All flights were safe and successful – and “all participating BVLOS drone companies have chosen to equip their drones with Elsights Halo on board (which is now the new industry standard for drone connectivity),” says the announcement.
Elsight’s Halo provides the secure and robust drone-to-controller connectivity needed to ensure remote pilots are always in control of their aircraft – and that could be key to bringing urban drone delivery projects and other advanced applications around the world make possible. Israel’s densely populated cities provide a real test site on which drone technology companies can prove their skills in a difficult environment: and the participants of the NAAMA initiative rise to the challenge.
The NAAMA project offers real benefits to global industry. “Collaborative and agile regulation brings together a dynamic drone ecosystem – by bringing together the public and private sectors, the drone ecosystem can develop a better understanding of the needs of both sectors,” says Elsight. “This conversation gave regulators an understanding of the technical capabilities, use cases, loopholes, and how to support and build a more resilient regulatory ecosystem.”
When – or when – drone delivery really takes off in the city, technologies like Elsight’s Halo will also take off as consumer appetites for drone delivery increase. According to research by ARK Invest:
Ark Invest originally estimated that today, with regulatory approval in the US, a drone could profitably deliver a package in under half an hour for $ 0.90, reducing the cost of domestic shipping by about 90%. Taking into account the efficiency of autonomous flight and the extent of human intervention, ARK now estimates that Package drones could profitably deliver packages for as little as $ 0.25. Given the smooth and inexpensive delivery, consumers would likely buy a lot more goods online, increasing the share of e-commerce in retail sales from 14% in 2019 to 60% in 2030, with drones accounting for more than half of e-commerce – Deliver volume as shown below. It is further estimated that by 2024 e-commerce and parcel drone delivery together will account for 38% of their shipments, and by 2030 that number would rise to 60% of shipments[1].
The next NAAMA event is to take place in Tel-Aviv, Israel.
Miriam McNabb is the Editor-in-Chief of DRONELIFE and CEO of JobForDrones, a professional marketplace for drone services, and a passionate observer of the emerging drone industry and regulatory environment for drones. Author of over 3,000 articles focusing on the commercial drone space, Miriam is an international speaker and recognized figure in the industry. Miriam graduated from the University of Chicago and has over 20 years experience in high-tech sales and marketing for emerging technologies.
For advice or writing in the drone industry, email Miriam.
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