Edmonton International Airport’s drone delivery programme launches new route

Edmonton International Airport (YEG) in Canada has launched the second phase of its drone delivery project with a new route to Montana First Nation’s Akamihk Medical Clinic in the City of Leduc. The partnership with Drone Delivery Canada (DDC), Apple Express, Braden Burry Expediting (bbe), Montana First Nation, the City of Leduc and Leduc County, enables YEG’s commercial Canary drone to transport first- and final-mile time-sensitive products. Air Canada is assisting DDC in this project.

In December 2021, YEG became Canada’s first airport to integrate drone logistics into its operations, and in May 2022 began regularly scheduled commercial drone delivery operations in controlled airspace. Since then, DDC’s drone has serviced more than 3,000 commercial drone flights over a distance of more than 8,400 km from YEG to a DroneSpot in Leduc County. This new phase will expand that route to the City of Leduc, growing the drone flight path and becoming the first drone programme in Canada to safely intersect with the runway glide path.

The Canary will fly 10.15 km from YEG to the Akamihk Medical Clinic along rail lines. The goal of expanding the route with additional partners is in tune with YEG’s mission to bring drones closer to a sustainable commercialised mode of transport. The future goal is to deliver final-mile packages for e-commerce businesses, removing vehicles from the road, reducing congestion and helping to control air pollution and emissions.

YEG has successfully integrated cargo drone operations in the same manner as all aircraft operations at the airport. Cargo drone operations are operated with the exact expectations of safety, security and operational integrity that airside operators, such as airlines and ground handlers, must meet. Drones that operate at the airport go through an extensive Hazard Identification Risk Assessment Program (HIRA), which is YEG’s Safety program, with safety, compliance and operations teams before they can fly.