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Special delivery drones will be flying through Rwandan skies dropping off medical supplies to millions in need.
Zipline, a start-up based in California, has engineered the little airplanes to carry vaccines, medicine and blood providing life-saving treatment those in the east African country.
The process is pretty simple – a health worker can place an order for medicine by text message and within minutes a Zip will be launched into the sky. The drone will arrive faster than any other mode of transport but will not land – instead it will drop the box of supplies attached to a paper parachute from the air, which will land safely at the medical centre.
The Zip will then head back to base where they’ll be recharged and stocked for a new mission.
Zipline launched the initiative in partnership with the government of Rwanda and will start delivering the medical products to 20 hospitals and health centres this summer.
According to Zipline, more than two billion Rwandans lack adequate access to essential medical supplies, often this is due to the difficulties in transporting them there.
