Freight forwarder Hellmann will use drones to defeat the backup supply link

Jonathan Thor

London (Reuters)-Relevant executives said that Germany’s leading freight forwarding company Hellmann will use drones operated by Bulgaria Dronamics from next year to speed up the transportation of important goods in Europe and solve the problem of tight supply chains.

In the past year, due to the new crown pneumonia epidemic, reduced aviation activities and severe port congestion, partly because the global disruption caused by reserve container ships has upended the logistics network, the company is looking for ways to relieve pressure.

Hellmann Worldwide Logistics stated that drones developed using Dronamics are “a real game changer.”

Hellmann Worldwide Logistics Air Freight Chief Operating Officer Jan Kleine Lasthues told Reuters: “At present, we are seeing a large number of sea freight around the world being converted to air freight, which highlights the need for urgent cargo transportation options.”

“This does not mean that tomorrow we will use drones to transport 80% of the goods, but for transportation within the European continent, this is an important supplement.”

Kleine Lasthues said these drones are very suitable for transporting emergency cargo, including mechanical spare parts, vaccines, plasma and other medicines.

These drones will begin commercial flights in 2022 and can carry 350 kilograms (772 pounds) of cargo and have a range of up to 2,500 kilometers (1,553 miles).

These drones require 400 meters of airport space to take off and land and can only fly between terminals.

Dronamics CEO Svilen Rangelov (Svilen Rangelov) said that so far, the company has signed contracts with 39 airports in 13 European countries.

He said the plan is to deploy 60 drones in 2022 for many customers, including Hellmann.

“Our aircraft use standard engines that have been certified and are very familiar to regulatory agencies, so we try to eliminate risks as much as possible,” he said.

“We are working on a variety of solutions, including encryption, to ensure that we are not subject to attacks such as GPS spoofing or hacking,” he added.