Matternet, a number one urban drone delivery platform developer, has been authorized by the Luftfahrt-Bundesamt (LBA), Germany’s Federal Aviation Office, to launch beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) drone delivery operations in Berlin. This approval marks the inception of Berlin’s first-ever BVLOS drone delivery network.
The brand new drone delivery network goals to attach 13 hospitals with Europe’s largest hospital laboratory, Labor Berlin, which handles over 6 million lab samples annually. The network will facilitate ultra-fast delivery of critical samples within the densely populated city, serving hundreds of thousands of patients every year once fully operational.
Andreas Raptopoulos, Founder and CEO of Matternet, expressed his excitement concerning the partnership with Labor Berlin, stating, “Healthcare systems need a quick, reliable and cost-effective solution to move lab samples and pharmacy items to make sure patients receive best-in-class care.”
The drone delivery network, which is ready to start operations early next yr following federal state level clearance, will primarily goal emergency diagnostics. It is predicted to extend operational efficiency and reduce carbon emissions from the nearly 250,000 miles per day that cars travel inside the city.
Nina Beikert, Labor Berlin CEO, highlighted the advantages of the collaboration with Matternet, saying, “These operations align with our dedication to innovation and sustainability as drone delivery not only accelerates emergency testing, but additionally enhances supply chain efficiencies while reducing greenhouse gas emissions.”
Matternet holds U.S. Federal Aviation Authority (FAA) Type Certification and Production Certification, in addition to BVLOS operational approvals from the FAA and the Swiss Federal Office of Civil Aviation (FOCA). The corporate has been delivering lab samples via drone in Switzerland since 2017 and within the US since 2019, transporting tens of hundreds of specimens for various hospitals.
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