Chinese companies are testing civilian drones that can carry a tonne of cargo

Chinese companies are testing civilian drones that can carry more than a tonne of cargo as the country’s couriers and on-demand services increasingly look to adopt unmanned aerial vehicles for deliveries.

Drones being developed by Beihang Unmanned Aircraft System (UAS) will next year be able to carry cargo weighing from one metric tonne to 1.5 tonnes, the equivalent of a sports car. The delivery drone, which is 11.9 metres long with a wingspan of 19.6 metres, will be able to fly a distance of 1,500 kilometres with cargo weighing one tonne, or 1,000 kilometres carrying 1.2 tonnes, the company said, adding that it could reach a top speed of 400 kilometres per hour.

“When we design and develop the drones, we follow the principles of high efficiency, intelligence and safety,” Yin Wei, chairman of Chinese motor and generator maker Changying Xinzhi Technology, the parent company of Beihang UAS, said at the Global Smart Logistics Summit in eastern China’s Hangzhou city on Thursday.

Yin said the company is currently designing the drones and will conduct test flights next year.

Drone makers such as Beihang UAS are tapping into the growing interest from couriers and on-demand service providers to use drones to deliver goods and services. China’s parcel delivery industry is expected to grow by between 25 and 30 per cent in coming years, according to Huachuang Securities.

SF Express, China’s largest publicly listed courier, has developed a delivery drone with a wingspan of 20 metres and length of 10 metres that can carry 1.2 tonnes of cargo. That drone can fly 3,000 kilometres and reach a height of 6,000 metres, according to a company statement in December.