Akihabara News (Tokyo) — Takamatsu-based drone startup Kamomeya has launched an unmanned drone delivery service between Mitoyo city’s Suda Port in Kagawa Prefecture and Awashima island, which is about four kilometers distant and administratively within the same city.
The company aims to boost access to consumer products through the drone delivery system for those living on the thinly-populated island. Awashima’s population is about 170 people.
Masato Ono, the president of Kamomeya, noted that the idea of using drones to deliver products between the island and the city center came to him while he was a volunteer at an art festival on Awashima island. He noticed that an ordinary shopping run would take residents half a day, since islanders have to travel to the city center to buy necessary goods.
The delivery route enables residents on Awashima island to order a range of products at the cost of only ¥500 (US$4.45) for door-to-door delivery service. They receive the goods within the same day if they order in the morning.
The flight itself takes about seven minutes one way.
In this project, Kamomeya is partnering with a local convenience store, offering forty kinds of goods for delivery. Residents have reacted by saying that they are grateful for the drone delivery service, though they also wish to see an expansion of the range of purchasable products.
Currently, the route operates every day in principle, except during bad weather, which is unfortunately quite frequent in the area.
Founded in 2014, Kamomeya intends to expand its services for remote islanders.
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