DPD France to Conduct Parcel Delivery by Drone in France

DPD France has been given authorisation to deliver parcels by drone on a second regular commercial line. Located in Isère (South-East of France), which links Fontanil-Cornillon to the village of Mont-Saint-Martin in an 8-minute round trip. The drone will travel from a mobile terminal installed directly in a delivery vehicle, guaranteeing safe drone take-off and landing.

The introduction of this service follows a research project backed by ADEME (Agency for the Environment and Energy Management). To date the delivery driver must travel 20 km for a round trip lasting around 30 minutes to go to Mont-Saint-Martin. This new drone delivery line means that delivery vans can avoid mountain roads and reduces the parcel delivery route to 3 km for a round-trip flight of 8 minutes. When the parcels arrive in Mont-Saint-Martin, they are deposited by drone in a secure, fixed receiving terminal near the town hall making it possible to receive and store several parcels. A delivery receipt is sent via SMS/email to a town hall employee, who is then able to receive the parcel in the compartment just like in a mailbox and subsequently hand-delivered to the recipient. The drone is said to have a range up to 15 km, or around 45 minutes (depending on the wind), payload up to 2 kg and a cruise speed of 30 km/h.