By Lauren Marcus, World Israel News -
Sushi, ice cream, and blood, platelets and plasma are flying high in the skies over central Israel today, thanks to a cutting-edge drone delivery pilot program backed by Israel’s Innovation Authority.
The deliveries conducted via drones are phase three in an eight step program created by Israel’s National Drone Initiative.
The delivery drones are flying over Tel Aviv, Herzliya, Ramat HaSharon and Hadera, but exclusively in open areas far from population centers and congested urban streets.
Hungry swimmers can order sushi to be delivered to Herzliya’s Tzuk Beach, or ice cream to Charles Clore Park near Jaffa, but not to an apartment located in the middle of a dense, highly populated Tel Aviv neighborhood.
Blood will be transported from Magen David Adom centers to Sheba Tel HaShomer hospital in accordance with Health Ministry guidelines.
The test could potentially pave the way for drone deliveries of critical biomedical supplies using drones in the future.
In a statement, Israel Innovation Authority CEO Dror Bin said the program showed that Israel is “on its way to creating a globally leading ecosystem in this field.”
“[With]in the framework of the demonstration, there [are] cargo delivery flights by commercial firms in different areas directly to the end consumer,” said Bin.
“Such unique collaboration between the Innovation Authority, the Civil Aviation Authority and Ayalon Highways is a catalyst for additional public entities such as the IDF Home Front Command, Magen David Adom, United Hatzalah emergency services and other commercial entities to benefit from the extraordinary capabilities demonstrated in this pilot.”
Itamar Ben-Meir, CEO of Ayalon Highways’ aerial control center, added that Tuesday marked “a meaningful step for the National Drone Initiative.”
The demonstration is being carried out by 16 private UAV companies, in collaboration with the Israeli Police, the National Fire Department, and the IDF Home Front Command.
