Service Offered Six Days Each Month In Fukushima

The Japan Post Company has initiated a pilot program to deliver documents by drone in Fukushima.

The first such delivery took place last Wednesday, according to the Japan Times. It follows an easing of regulations in Japan in September intended to help deal with labor shortages in the transportation industry.

The company will is initially using drones to transport its own documents and advertisements between two post offices in the northern part of the prefecture. The service will be evaluated to determine if it can eventually be used to carry regular mail, and the company hopes that it can use unmanned aircraft for deliveries to mountainous and other remote areas such as islands.

The change in regulations in September allows for BVLOS flights. The first flight carried brochures for New Year's cards and pictures of UAVs drawn by children, according to the report. It departed from a post office in Minamisoma at about 9:00 a.m. local time, and arrived about 15 minutes later in the town of Namie, which is about five nautical miles away.

The drones will fly up to two round trips per day on six days per month, according to the report. They can carry about four-and-a-half pounds of goods at speeds just under 30 knots.

(Image from file. Not Japan Post delivery drone)

FMI: Source report