The first regular drone flights approved in Poland

 

"LabAir, a company that is part of the Farada Group, obtained approval from the Civil Aviation Authority for regular drone transports of medical samples for ALAB laboratories. The six-month cooperation with the LabAir operator and the Polish Air Navigation Services Agency resulted in obtaining the consent of the Civil Aviation Authority for the launch of a regular, unmanned drone route between the Warsaw ALAB laboratory at Stępińska Street and the hospital in Sochaczew. - We are an alternative to road transport. The courier needs at least 70 minutes to cover the 70-kilometer route between e.g. Warsaw Mokotów and Sochaczew. In the airspace, the distance between these two points is shorter, as it is only 60 km in a straight line. Our drone will cover this route in just 45-50 minutes - says Adam Maciej Cudny, Chairman of the Farada Group Supervisory Board.

ALAB laboratories is one of the largest nationwide networks of medical analysis laboratories. Annually, it performs over 50 million medical tests, has a network of over 500 collection points and over 80 laboratories. - Thanks to the use of drone transport, patients who will receive the results of their tests even several hours faster due to the shorter delivery time of the samples will benefit first of all. We hope that in the future this technology will also be used in the transport of blood - hospitals in Pułtusk and Sochaczew have a blood bank, which we supply - says Ewa Małkowska, the president of the board of ALAB laboratories.

 

LabAir will carry out repetitive, daily flights, which will reduce the involvement of couriers using cars. The drone's flight along the designated route is generally controlled by the autopilot, while in the event of a possible incident in the airspace, the operator, located in the operating center, will take over control. Information about flight parameters such as the speed of the drone or its height is displayed to the operator on a regular basis thanks to special cameras that also allow you to track the flight route.

 

The Polish Air Navigation Services Agency reminds that the first regular long-haul flights with unmanned aerial vehicles started on February 17, after a series of test flights conducted in autumn 2020 under the supervision of PANSA.

Independent expert on the drone market, legal counsel Małgorzata Darowska believes that drones have great potential in the medical transport market. - This is not a consumer market, but a highly specialized service. The transport of the contents is subject to requirements concerning, for example, temperature and shocks. The demand came from the customer, he says what he wants. There was a reversal from what we had so far encountered when drone companies offered products that the market did not necessarily want.

 

In addition, drone transport is zero-emission. - I do not rule out that the European Commission will support this solution, which would be attractive for the health service. The essence of this service is the mass of operations, permanent routes are important that will allow you to make many flights and amortize the investment in a reasonable time - emphasizes Darowska.

 

Regular flights of transport drones take place on the routes between Warsaw and Sochaczew as well as Warsaw and Pułtusk. - We want to create more drone routes. We conduct talks with other clients. There is no shortage of interest. Our unmanned aerial vehicles can transport not only laboratory samples, but also smaller organs for transplantation. The tests also show that they are useful in city monitoring and in geodesy as an aid in taking photogrammetric photos. They will also be used in high mountain rescue - lists further areas of use of A.M. Wonderful.

 

Darowska, on the other hand, points out that fittings for cooperation with various companies have been made for many years. - Due to these works and covid, the appetite for such solutions grows significantly. Demand is clearly growing and the question is whether Polish companies will be able to meet it - the expert wonders.

 

It is worth to point out that the domestic market for technologically advanced end products is limited. - We have good ideas and solutions, but we cannot combine components and we are rarely able to implement them. We do not have any investor traditions in high technologies. 

 

It is not about VC investments of PLN 5-10 million, but significant financing that will allow the company to quickly develop and expand. That is why management competencies are important. Farada has a small scale, but a lot of potential as she managed the entire project until she succeeded in selling the service. The company acquired investments, proved that there are management competences in the country, that we have managers who are able to rise to the occasion and lead to cooperation between companies - emphasizes Darowska."