On July 18th, Volansi, the industry leader in autonomous Vertical Take-off and Landing (VTOL) point-to-point drone delivery services, completed the first-ever autonomous Unmanned Aircraft Systems’ (UAS) maritime cargo delivery between two moving US government vessels off the coast of Key West, Florida.
The maritime cargo deliveries were completed over the course of three separate flights. The first two were completed with the VOLY 10 Series, which is capable of lifting up to 10 pounds of cargo for over 42 miles. These flights took off from a Military Sealift Command Expeditionary Transport and travelled 15 nautical miles to the United States Coast Guard (USCG) Cutter William Trump. The third flight was completed by the VOLY 20 series, which has a 350-mile range and an average cruise speed of 75 miles per hour, and is capable of carrying up to 20 pounds of cargo. The VOLY 20 completed a mile long flight in winds of up to 20 mph to its landing point, the USCG Panga, before making a successful return.
With its UAS VTOL fleet, Volansi aims to remove limitations imposed by remote locations and harsh environments. These factors often make crucial missions, such as the delivery of critical supplies or gathering of information, difficult, if not outright impossible. Due to runway independence, a small operational footprint, and even the ability to carry cargo and sensors simultaneously on some models, Volansi’s fleet is able to surpass these obstacles.
“This is a remarkable milestone that signals a bright future for autonomous cargo delivery,” said CEO Dr. Will Roper. “Volansi is the first to deliver cargo by UAS systems with ISR capability off a government vessel utilizing a single ground control station. With it’s cutting-edge VTOL capabilities, Volansi is well-positioned to deliver critical cargo supplies to our defense customers for time-sensitive missions in order to save time, money and lives. We look forward to expanding our fleet in order to deliver heavier payloads and travel further distances in the near future.”
This is just the latest in a series of accomplishments for Volansi, which has previously made strides in the cargo delivery and medical supply fields, and has had their defense subsidiary selected by the US Air Force to join the Skyborg Vanguard Program.
Volansi will exhibit this week at Sea-Air-Space, the Navy League’s Global Maritime Exposition. The company will display multiple UAS, and Roper and Co-founder, CTO Hannan Parvizian will share the company innovations and technologies that led to these successful demonstrations.
Ian attended Dominican University of California, where he received a BA in English in 2019. With a lifelong passion for writing and storytelling and a keen interest in technology, he is now contributing to DroneLife as a staff writer.
Miriam McNabb is the Editor-in-Chief of DRONELIFE and CEO of JobForDrones, a professional drone services marketplace, and a fascinated observer of the emerging drone industry and the regulatory environment for drones. Miriam has penned over 3,000 articles focused on the commercial drone space and is an international speaker and recognized figure in the industry. Miriam has a degree from the University of Chicago and over 20 years of experience in high tech sales and marketing for new technologies.For drone industry consulting or writing, Email Miriam.
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