By Staff Correspondent
Gurugram, December 11, 2021: SpiceJet, the country’s favourite airline, showcased its Drone delivery capabilities at the Gwalior Drone Mela. SpiceJet is the only scheduled airline to experiment with drone delivery services. The airline plans to introduce SpiceXpress drone delivery service to strategically expand its logistics platform while building a unique and seamless supply chain competence.
SpiceJet demonstrated its Drone delivery capabilities at the Gwalior Drone Mela at Madhav Institute of Technology & Science in the presence of the Hon’ble Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh Shivraj Singh Chouhan, Hon’ble Union Minister for Civil Aviation, Shri. Jyotiraditya M. Scindia, Hon’ble Union Minister of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare, Shri Narendra Singh Tomar, Hon’ble Member of Parliament, Gwalior, Shri. Vivek Narayan Shejwalkar and CMD SpiceJet Ajay Singh.
Ajay Singh, Chairman and Managing Director, SpiceJet, said, “SpiceJet continues to innovate and experiment with new technologies, and we hope to introduce our drone delivery services soon. By inducting drones in the supply chain, SpiceJet’s logistics arm, SpiceXpress, will take a massive technological leap which will change the game for fast and cost-effective logistics in India. This will redefine the entire supply chain business and offer a unique experience to the end consumer. With drones entering the logistics business, our fast emerging and growing e-commerce industry will be able to access the remotest corners of the country.”
SpiceJet plans to introduce customised drones of different payloads, including 0-5 kg, 5-10 kg and 10-25 kg, which can potentially change India’s supply chain capabilities, thereby making it more resilient and sustainable. The airline initially plans to target mid mile drone deliveries while preparing for last-mile deliveries in future.
SpiceXpress will focus on delivering vaccines, life-saving drugs and essential goods, among others, to the remotest and farthest corners of the country, which is otherwise difficult to reach by the traditional means of transportations. SpiceJet has partnered with Throttle Aerospace for more than 50 customised high-end drones, while Aeologic will manage drone software.
The airline’s initial outreach plan for its drone business encompasses 10 districts with over 150 locations to achieve over 25,000 deliveries per month. SpiceJet will also set up dedicated drone ports at strategic locations across the country.
Poor transport and infrastructural challenges have been a critical deterrent for taking new-age services to the hinterlands across the country. With businesses rapidly shifting to automation and enterprises prioritising efficiency, autonomous technologies such as drones are now being considered for wider industrial use, including the logistics industry.
Last year, a SpiceXpress-led consortium submitted a proposal to DGCA to conduct experimental Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVLOS) operations of remotely piloted aircraft in response to a DGCA notice inviting Expression of Interest.
Based on the recommendations of the BVLOS Experiment Assessment and Monitoring Committee, SpiceXpress was granted formal permission by the regulator for conducting experimental BVLOS drone trials in May 2020. Throttle Aerospace has completed 100 hours of testing based on the recommendations of the BVLOS Experiment Assessment and Monitoring Committee.