5 Ways Drones Got the Job Done in 2020
This year, drones and quick action from the FAA helped to create some innovative solutions to combat the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency.
By Callie Dosberg, FAA Office of Communications
Drones and innovation go hand in hand. And in 2020, drones continue to serve communities in a number of unique ways. When the unprecedented COVID-19 public health emergency arose, that innovation became even more critical, changing how we can transport and receive important goods and services — including medical supplies, test kits, prescription drugs, and even blood — while helping people stay safe and remain in their homes.
Here are some recent examples of how the FAA is enabling innovation to take flight with drones:
1. Delivery at your door
Drones supported a retirement community in Orlando, Florida by ferrying medicine from a nearby pharmacy. Using drones in this manner kept a population that is considered high risk for contracting COVID-19 at home and supported social distancing efforts.
2. Medical supplies take to the sky
The FAA issued a waiver to a healthcare network to conduct operations over people and beyond pilots’ visual line of sight, using drones to carry personal protective equipment and other medical supplies around hospital facilities in Charlotte, North Carolina.
3. Reaching hard-to-reach populations
The Chula Vista Police Department near San Diego used drones to reach out to members of the homeless population in hard-to-reach areas, like remote canyons. Speaker-equipped drones directed people in need to staging areas where they could receive food, personal hygiene kits, face masks, medical screening, and information about how to protect themselves against COVID-19.
4. Airway inspections help businesses evolve
The FAA also allowed drones to conduct oil and gas pipelines inspections so infrastructure companies can maintain the safety of their employees.
5. Beating boredom with book deliveries
A library in Christiansburg, Virginia is delivering books to students via drones, helping beat boredom and giving them something to look forward to. Students order books through their school’s website, where they can choose from more than 150,000 titles, and the drones deliver the books to their house.
The FAA is working with the drone community to encourage innovation and advance how we use drones in our day-to-day life. To support emergency response efforts, the FAA can sometimes issue special approvals to government, health, or community officials in a matter of minutes. Learn more about the FAA’s work with drones at https://www.faa.gov/uas/.
