Skyports Partners With MassDOT for Drone Ops

Skyports has partnered with the Massachusetts Department of Transportation’s (MassDOT) Aeronautics Division to showcase how drone services could link communities across the Cape Cod region in the US. The reason stems from MassDot’s need to find a solution for connecting remote communities to everyday services, such as healthcare, logistics, and in particular, providing emergency medical delivery after natural disasters. Since the Cape Cod region contains numerous islands, peninsulas, and offshore energy projects, Skyports presents an ideal solution with its drones. Skyports’ drones can fly safely in harsh weather and can carry payloads of up to 100 lbs.

Skyports has also been approved by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to operate beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) flights in a week-long feasibility project. The project will help guide MassDOT in exploring BVLOS drone operations in Massachusetts, to perform services like rail network and road inspections.

Dr. Jeffrey DeCarlo, MassDOT Aeronautics Administrator, claims “MassDOT is excited to be working with Skyports for this first delivery demonstration helping us establish a foundation for new, innovative drone use cases to support communities across the Commonwealth.” He further added, “We are now exploring new drone use cases such as emergency delivery, and are fortunate to be able to partner with companies like Skyports that are pushing innovative technologies and operations. Massachusetts has a diverse geography and a complex airspace to navigate and Skyports has brought its tremendous flight experience to bear in order to make this first demonstration a success.”

Alex Brown, the Head of Drone Deliveries at Skyports, is positive about the collaboration. “Our belief at Skyports is that services such as healthcare should be accessible in a timely way to everyone regardless of where they live which up-until-now has been a huge challenge for road transport in hard-to-reach areas.” He continues, “Drones really are transforming the logistics sector by bringing fast, frequent, reliable, and affordable solutions. This is just the first step in bringing BVLOS drone operations including drone delivery services, to Massachusetts in the coming years.”

The project will see Skyports completing a series of test flights and demonstrations to prove its operational reliability and technological capability. Afterward, Skyports plans to move into full-scale permanent commercial operations in Massachusetts before expanding operations across other US states.