Wing Blog

Wing and PepsiCo Team Up to Deliver Snacks for the Big Game by Drone

2025-01-30T11:20:00.000-08:00

It’s up, and it’s good: Wing and PepsiCo are teaming up to make the big game even more memorable, delivering game day snacks by drone in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex.

Before the big game residents of Frisco (TX) can order a free PepsiCo Party Pack from February 8–9, featuring an all-star lineup of Doritos, Tostitos dips, and Pepsi Zero Sugar. With the dynamic duo of speedy Wing drone delivery and your favorite snack brands, you'll have everything you need for the kick-off in New Orleans on Sunday, February 9.

Wing and PepsiCo are both working towards a more sustainable future – including the way our favorite snacks get delivered. PepsiCo’s first foray into drone delivery is just one way it is helping to decarbonize the value chain.

Wing, too, envisions a world of more sustainable supply chains—it’s been working toward that for the better part of a decade, completing commercial drone deliveries around the world. That continues with feeding hungry football fans (while keeping their cars on the bench!) for the big game.

Get it while supplies last! Frisco residents should download the Wing app today to make sure they’re ready to claim their PepsiCo Party Pack. The app will tell you if your address is eligible, and on February 8 and 9 you’ll be able to press order and have your snacks flown to you faster than you can say, “hut, hut, hike!”

Wing’s highly automated, all-electric drones can deliver small items and meals in minutes, with seamless journeys so not a drop of your drink gets spilled. After running its safe and speedy route to your door, cruising ~65 mph at a height of about 150 feet along the way, the drone will gently lower your order to the turf for you to unpack and enjoy. From there, any fumbles are on you!

“We are proud to collaborate with Wing to deliver the PepsiCo Party Pack in Frisco,” said PepsiCo Strategic Partnerships Senior Director Amanda DeVoe-Bice. “This is an exciting opportunity to reimagine and demonstrate new ways of showing up to our consumers in a sustainable way, and enjoy their favorite PepsiCo products, without having to miss a moment of the game.”

Drone delivery set to launch at Brookfield Properties’ Dallas-Fort Worth malls in partnership with DoorDash

2024-12-18T06:59:00.000-08:00

Santa won’t be the only one flying through the skies with boxes full of goodies this holiday season. Wing is excited to announce that it’s partnering with DoorDash and Brookfield Properties in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex, offering ultra-fast drone delivery from local malls just in time for the holidays.

Launching at Brookfield Properties’ Stonebriar Centre in Frisco and Hulen Mall in Fort Worth, this will be a first-of-its-kind service for American shopping malls.

More than 50 merchants will be available for drone delivery through the DoorDash app. Wing’s highly automated drones can deliver items and meals to doorsteps in as little as 15 minutes. The drones can navigate to the delivery location at a speed of 65 mph and a cruising height of about 150 feet before safely lowering the delivery to the ground. Wing has been operating in the U.S. for the past 5 years, and has completed more than 400,000 commercial deliveries worldwide.

Beginning today, when DoorDash customers with an eligible address in Dallas-Fort Worth place a qualifying order in the DoorDash app, they will see the option to have their items delivered by drone on the checkout page. Once they select drone delivery and place their order, it will be prepared, packaged and delivered via a Wing drone.

To see if your address is eligible, visit wing.com/doordash.

Wing’s partnership with DoorDash is guided by the shared goal of providing customers with the convenience and speed of air deliveries for the local products and brands they know and love. This partnership expansion follows pilot programs in Melbourne, Australia and Christiansburg, Virginia.

The expansion is also made possible by a partnership with Brookfield Properties, a global leader in real estate management. Brookfield Properties is one of the only operators in the world able to curate, evolve and reimagine today’s thriving malls and customer experience. Through a novel partnership with Wing, Brookfield Properties will trial ways to incorporate drone delivery into its shopping centers. The goal is to enable businesses to take advantage of previously underutilized spaces — such as rooftops or excess parking — in order to reach more customers at home via drone delivery.

“We are proud to be the first landlord to provide drone delivery as another avenue to help our tenants serve our communities,” said Katie Kurtz, senior vice president of Business Development at Brookfield Properties. “We’re committed to meeting the changing needs of the ways people shop. Brookfield Properties has a strong track record of evolving our assets and leading ahead of the curve in retail.”

NHS blood sample analysis now expedited by on-demand drone delivery service

2024-11-13T01:14:00.000-08:00

Wing drone deliveries of NHS blood samples are now underway in London between Guy’s and St Thomas’ hospitals.

As we previously shared, we are working with our partners at Apian and Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust to transport blood samples for patients undergoing surgery who are at high risk of complications from bleeding disorders. Our aim is to improve patient care with faster and more frequent transportation and subsequent analysis of blood samples.

We’ve been thrilled to see so much excitement around these patient-first operations as we’ve completed our final validations and have started delivering blood samples that doctors will use to make clinical decisions for their patients. From introducing our aircraft and way of operating at community events to meeting the NHS professionals who have quickly integrated drone delivery into their daily logistics, we’ve felt the warm welcome in South London.

We are now flying up to 10 on-demand transfers per day from Monday through Friday. Each delivery holds several samples in a safe and secured medical canister.

Watch to see how Wing drones move blood samples from Guy’s Hospital to St Thomas’s Hospital in under 3 minutes.

1 year and 26 cities later: Celebrating our DFW growth

2024-10-03T06:22:00.000-07:00

As we mark the first anniversary of when we began scaling across the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex, I’m excited to share that we are now expanding drone delivery faster than ever before in Wing’s history.

On average this summer, we launched a new drone delivery facility in the DFW area every two weeks. And we’re planning an even faster pace of expansion for the rest of this year and into 2025.

The newest location just opened in partnership with Walmart in the City of Denton (TX). Seven days a week, drones are taking off from the Supercenter located on South Loop 288, and serving thousands of eligible households in the cities of Denton and Corinth.

This marks the 11th Walmart store where Wing operates, serving 26 different cities and towns. Wing has now delivered to customers in 6 out of the 11 counties that make up the DFW Metroplex.

To give a sense of scale, here are some of my favorite stats from our service in Texas over the past year:

Our average flight time from stores to customer homes has been 3 minutes and 24 seconds.
We’ve delivered 554 limes, or enough to make about 700 margaritas.
We’ve delivered enough cookies to share with every single person in a sold out AT&T Stadium.
On a typical weekend, we accumulate enough flight miles to travel across the state of Texas and back.

I couldn’t be prouder of the entire team at Wing and Walmart that made this possible.

As I meet people around the country and explain what Wing does, there’s one question I hear most often: When will drone delivery arrive in my neighborhood? Well, based on how things are going in Texas, I think it’s safe to say it’s probably closer than you may imagine.

Beyond the aisle: The 2024 state of grocery shopping and delivery

2024-09-19T06:44:00.000-07:00

The future of groceries will be defined by speed and convenience, with 81% of respondents interested in ultra-fast delivery.

A majority of Americans head to the grocery store at least once a week—but they’re ready for something new. Consumers aren’t satisfied with the shopping patterns of the past. Evolving consumer behaviors point to a future where grocery shopping lies beyond the aisle.

Wing recently polled 5,000 consumers across the country to gauge the state of grocery shopping and delivery preferences. We found real frustrations with the in-store experience: 82% of shoppers name crowds, long lines, and unavailable inventory as the biggest pain points. “Boomerang” trips are also common. 62% return to the store to pick up items they forgot or missed.

A delivery inflection point is soon approaching. We found that speed is crucial to converting delivery-curious shoppers into delivery-diehards: 81% of consumers want the option to receive their orders within 30 minutes or less. Ultra-fast fulfillment is especially appealing to Gen Z and Millennial shoppers, of which 61% order grocery delivery at least once a week.

But the impulse for instant gratification isn’t limited to younger generations. Traditional delivery services leave much to be desired, and shoppers of all ages recognize that. That’s why 58% of respondents are eager to use “fast mile” drone delivery for their grocery needs.

These are just a few of the insights from Wing’s new survey-based report, “Beyond the Aisle: The 2024 State of Grocery Shopping and Delivery.” Download the full report to learn more about how the future of groceries—and ultra-fast delivery—is up for grabs.

Gearing up to deliver medical samples between London hospitals

2024-09-16T16:09:00.000-07:00

The United Kingdom’s National Health Service, or NHS, is planning to begin transporting blood samples by drone between two central London hospitals, powered by Wing and Apian.

Our goal is simple: improve patient care by speeding up hospital and laboratory logistics thanks to fast, efficient, and safe medical drone delivery flights.

We will provide on-demand transfer of blood samples, taking these time-sensitive items out of delivery vans and city traffic. As noted by the Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust, the trial will transport blood samples for patients undergoing surgery who are at high risk of complications from bleeding disorders.

Flying between two hospital rooftops with a cruising speed of about 100 km/h and a flight time of less than two minutes, our drones will zip by quickly and blend in with city sounds. While it won’t appear all that much is happening from the ground level, Wing drones will be improving the experience for caregivers and patients inside the hospitals.

This operation is regulated by the UK Civil Aviation Authority which has granted the airspace approval. We will conclude all final regulatory requirements in advance of operations later this fall.

We’ve already seen the benefits of medical drone delivery in commercial operations at Wing and Apian’s Dublin, Ireland medical supply service. To date, we’ve focused on sutures and surgical tools, flying these medical supplies in approximately 4 minutes.

We’re excited to implement our medical drone delivery service in a landmark first both for the NHS and for an urban environment like London. Stay tuned for an inside look at our operations once these deliveries are in the air.

For more information, visit apian.aero/london.

Bringing the Wing experience to the world’s largest airshow

2024-08-09T10:22:00.000-07:00

We recently wrapped up at EAA AirVenture, the world’s largest aviation event held in Oshkosh, Wisconsin. During the show, we demonstrated our drone delivery service in one of the most challenging environments - the bustling airspace above AirVenture.

Our demonstration experience leverages our universal modular, lightweight setup, allowing us to easily create a nest in a range of settings and share our operations with more people. This is the same setup and our real aircraft that have completed over 400,000 commercial deliveries on three continents.

We also brought the newest member of our Aircraft Library to our booth. This larger aircraft will complement our fleet to streamline the deliveries of larger orders, and Airventure was the perfect venue for visitors to get a close-up look. Just like different aircraft showcased different capabilities at the show, this aircraft is our 5lb carrier for larger orders.

It was also a joy to meet so many people! The Winglets at our booth and around the show represented some of the numerous pathways to aviation careers within our company. From lifelong aviation enthusiasts to exceptional professionals just entering the drone space, Winglets each have a unique story on how they got to Wing.

While our commercial drone delivery operations continue to scale around the world - ranging from new milestones in Dallas to medical deliveries in Dublin - opportunities like EAA Airventure allow anyone to see drone delivery in action - no service area required. Another great show in the books - see you next year!

Wing expands service to Melbourne with DoorDash while advancing Australian regulatory approvals

2024-07-17T13:01:00.000-07:00

Melbourne has one of the best food scenes in the world, is the food delivery capital of Australia, and starting today, is the largest metro area in Australia where Wing drone delivery is available. Wing is expanding into greater Melbourne, bringing more than 5 years of commercial delivery experience in Australia to the state of Victoria.

This expansion is supported by updated regulatory approvals we’ve received from the Australian government. Our approved delivery area covering Melbourne is our largest in Australia to date, as is the pilot to aircraft ratio which governs our highly automated operations. These changes allow a single pilot to oversee up to 50 drones in the air at any given time, an increase of over three times (3x) our prior approvals. This increase was achieved by demonstrating the safety of our aircraft, our system, and our operations, while delivering directly to homes over the past 5 years in Australia.

Giving over 250,000 Melbourne-area residents access to drone delivery via the DoorDash app, our first Nest in Victoria is located at QIC’s Eastland Shopping Centre in Maroondah. This expansion marks significant growth into major metro cities, allowing for hundreds of thousands more people, and dozens of new merchants, to have access to drone delivery in Australia through DoorDash.

2024 is the year of drone delivery. With this latest expansion, Wing and DoorDash continue to meet the rising demand for fast and efficient food delivery.

Drone delivery in South Dublin: Medtronic medical supplies supporting local hospitals

2024-07-01T22:10:00.000-07:00

Wing and Apian are working with Medtronic to provide medical drone delivery services to Blackrock Clinic and St. Vincent’s Private Hospital.

Today, Wing is excited to share that Medtronic, Blackrock Clinic, and St. Vincent’s Private Hospital, working with Wing and Apian, will begin a medical supply drone delivery service in the coming week. We will deliver Medtronic’s ingestible camera, PillCam™, sutures, spinal implants and coronary stents to start.

Medical drone delivery provides faster, more reliable, and more sustainable medical logistics - allowing providers to focus on their patients.

Medical services are constantly evolving to meet the highest standards of care. The momentum for medical drone delivery is clear, and global leaders in medical technology, services, and solutions such as Medtronic and innovative hospitals and clinics like Blackrock and St. Vincent’s see the path to integrate drone delivery into their daily operations.

Our healthcare partners trust Wing drone delivery to help fulfill their commitments to their patients. We take their confidence in us very seriously, and aim to progress healthcare as one of our focus areas.

Our joint operations are running Monday through Friday with up to 20 deliveries per day through this year. Wing drones will fly efficient routes at speeds up to 100 km per hour, avoiding traffic congestion on Dublin’s roads.

We’re pleased to join our partners in their innovation in patient care, and look forward to sharing more about the impact of these operations in the months to come. For more information on this effort, visit Apian’s newsroom.

An exciting next step for drone delivery

2024-06-06T14:17:00.000-07:00

Wing has built our drone delivery platform from the ground up with our partners in mind. We don’t believe drone delivery should operate as a standalone service, but rather a technology that should be deeply integrated into existing supply chains. Customers will have different needs at different times, and retailers that utilize a variety of delivery technologies are better positioned to effectively meet those needs.

With that as our guiding principle, we’ve done a few things over the past couple of years to design our technology for integration:

Physical Infrastructure: We built our drone delivery hubs to be lightweight and easy to deploy. They don’t require major construction, but rather just a simple fence in a parking lot.
AutoLoader: We’re developing the AutoLoader so our partners can fulfill orders without waiting for pickup or interacting directly with aircraft. It’s designed to mimic the process for curbside pickup, matching existing workflows in order to make drone delivery more seamless for store operations.
Software Integration: We’ve developed a suite of APIs to enable our partners to integrate drone delivery into their existing e-commerce platforms. More on this below.

That last one is especially significant today, as Walmart just announced it's bringing the drone delivery ordering experience directly to the Walmart app later this month.

“Our goal is to make drone delivery completely seamless for our partners and their customers,” Wing CEO Adam Woodworth said. “When Wing drone delivery is available within the Walmart app later this month, customers will have a wider selection and a better shopping experience than ever before. This is a major step toward making drone delivery a part of everyday life.”

With passage of FAA Reauthorization, the way forward for drone delivery becomes clearer

2024-05-17T16:02:00.000-07:00

I have said that 2024 is the year of drone delivery. Today marks a significant milestone along this path as the President has signed into law the FAA Reauthorization Bill following overwhelming bipartisan support in Congress. At Wing, we are encouraged by what we see in the law’s final language and are excited to work with the FAA on implementation of the law’s provisions over the months to come.

Over a year ago, in March 2023, I was invited to testify before the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee’s subcommittee on Aviation while Congress worked diligently on the legislation. I was honored to testify and shared Wing’s experience with and vision for the future of UAS integration, recognizing the importance of the foundations that industry and the FAA have built thus far, and the benefits of performance-based approvals and a cooperative airspace.

While the consumer demand and commercial interest in drone delivery are significant, I noted in my testimony that even with diligent effort by the regulator, the question of what “test we had to pass” in order to obtain the regulatory approvals necessary for our operations and innovations has not always had an obvious answer. The FAA Reauthorization attempts to fix some of these issues and I am encouraged to see a policy framework now set by Congress in law to allow a new predictable and pragmatic framework for regulating uncrewed aviation. I am eager to see this become a reality as the provisions of today’s newly signed law are successfully implemented.

We’ve been operating in the U.S. since 2019 delivering thousands of goods directly to customers' homes. We look forward to bringing drone delivery to more communities across the U.S. throughout the rest of 2024 and into the years to come as we work with the FAA to implement the FAA Reauthorization law’s key provisions that enable even more sustainable, scaled operations.

Wing and DoorDash Expand Drone Delivery Partnership to the US

2024-03-21T05:57:00.000-07:00

Following a successful year-long trial in Australia, Wing is expanding its partnership with DoorDash to the United States, bringing Wendy’s® meals to customers with speedy drone delivery.

Kicking off in Christiansburg, Virginia, the expansion of our partnership with DoorDash is an important step in Wing’s vision of creating what we believe can become the preferred mode of delivery for the millions of small packages that are delivered every day around the world.

Wing launched our first US commercial operations in Christiansburg in 2019, and the community has been an integral part of drone delivery’s progress ever since, making it a fitting place to kick off the US expansion of our DoorDash partnership. Starting with service from one Wendy’s restaurant, Christiansburg customers will see an option in the DoorDash app to have their Wendy’s favorites delivered by drone.

Wing’s drones are a fast and effective option for getting smaller items quickly, ensuring your DoorDash order arrives in as little as 30 minutes (Wing’s fastest-ever delivery took just under three minutes!). Our drones travel around 65 mph, then hover and gently lower your order right outside your doorstep using a tether. With such speedy delivery, we’re able to keep your food warm, your treats frozen, and everything delicious upon arrival. Our streamlined delivery process is a game-changer because it's not just about speed—it's about satisfying your cravings and last-minute needs without adding stress to your day or putting more vehicles on the road.

In our recent survey with 1,000 US consumers, we uncovered a rising sentiment for sustainable delivery: 46% want a more environmentally friendly option for single-item delivery. The expansion of our partnership with DoorDash is exactly the kind of sustainable option that people want for small orders, as a complement to larger orders traditionally fulfilled by Dashers. Not only are we getting your orders to you quickly, but we're doing it with a small environmental footprint.

We’re proud to bring drone delivery via DoorDash to the US for the first time. To our friends in Christiansburg, get ready to place your drone delivery orders via DoorDash and share your experience on social with #dronedelivery.

Wing's multi-layered approach to detect & avoid

2024-02-28T10:21:00.000-08:00

At Wing, safety isn't just a priority, it's woven into the very fabric of our operations. As a leader in drone delivery, we understand the critical responsibility of sharing the skies with traditional aircraft. That's why we've implemented a multi-layered "detect & avoid" system to enable us to safely integrate our aircraft into complex airspace.

For our operations in the Dallas Fort-Worth area, Wing drones operate within airspace referred to as the "Mode C Veil” and all Wing operations take place below 400 feet in populated areas where most traditional aircraft are not permitted to fly.

We also leverage cutting-edge technology to actively detect and avoid other air traffic. Most traditional aircraft within the Mode C Veil are required to utilize Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast (ADS-B), a system that broadcasts their location and flight data. Our highly automated drones and our “Pilots in Command” are constantly monitoring this real-time data stream. When needed, the drones can pause take off’s and automatically adjust their flight paths to maintain safe distances. Another action the drone can take is to land proactively, directing the drone to designated “preferred landing zones” away from populated areas and traffic, and gently landing on the ground. This is similar to how cars can pull over to the side of the road, when needed. This is yet another layer in the mitigations to help promote safety.

Further, our trained "Pilots in Command" (PICs) continuously monitor the airspace. Our PIC’s can also intervene during a drone flight if needed to initiate a contingency landing. Finally, Wing personnel are always prepared for swift retrieval of landed drones.

If you ever encounter a landed Wing drone, remember two crucial steps: do not touch it and call the phone number located on its wing. This simple action helps us promptly retrieve the drone, while prioritizing public safety.

We believe that responsible drone integration is the key to unlocking the potential of this technology, creating a future where efficient delivery seamlessly coexists with traditional air traffic. With safety at the forefront of everything we do, Wing is proud to pave the way for a future where the skies remain safe and accessible for all.

New operations hire as Wing expands drone delivery in 2024

2024-02-15T06:00:00.000-08:00

To meet fast-growing customer demand for drone delivery, our constant focus is on scaling operations and making integration as simple as possible for retail partners. Wing has already announced developments in 2024, with an expansion to additional Walmart stores across the Dallas-Fort Worth area and a new aircraft that can carry additional weight added to our fleet.

As we aim to make drone delivery available to millions more customers this year, we’ve made a new key appointment to the Wing operations team.

Nathaniel (Nate) Milner has joined Wing as our new Head of Operations, with over two decades of experience developing and operating seamless convenience delivery models. In this role, Nate will be responsible for rapidly building out Wing’s delivery processes as partner and metro expansion scale.

Nate began his 20 year career by launching a restaurant and grocery delivery startup and has stayed in the industry ever since. He pioneered and drove hyper scale in the last mile delivery vertical with companies such as Dining In (a Grubhub Company), Amazon Restaurants, Wholefoods on Amazon, Refraction AI (autonomous vehicle technology), Howard Hughes Corp. (real estate development), and Capgemini (IT services and consulting).

Nate Milner, Head of Operations, Wing

What excited you most about joining Wing?

"The opportunity to truly disrupt the last mile delivery space by building a new vertical of fulfillment is an energizing and unique opportunity! Over the past 20 years I have built and led a multitude of innovative companies all aiming to revolutionize and modernize last mile logistics. However, online ordering functionality, merchant partnerships and logistics organizations even with autonomous robots still have advancements needed in order to differentiate the offering for leading competitors.

After meeting the team and learning more about Wing’s technology and business, I was floored by the level of maturity of the technology. The team is so passionate about innovation, customer experience and safety.

Having the opportunity to work alongside leading aviation and technology experts to build a hyper scale model in last mile delivery for key retailers and beyond is a formula for success and a dream to be involved in."

If you’re not at work, where are you?

"I have a love for the outdoors, in the pacific northwest hiking, traveling, playing sports, practicing yoga and going to the movies with my kids. In addition, my son is an avid Pokemon trading card player and you can find us competing in Pokemon Trading Card Game tournaments locally in Seattle and we have traveled in the past 12 months to Sacramento, Fresno, LA, Portland and Vancouver Canada."

Join us in welcoming Nate to the Wing team as we continue to make drone delivery a reality for even more communities in 2024.

Customer demand and Wing’s Aircraft Library design approach shape new aircraft

2024-01-17T06:00:00.000-08:00

At Wing, we’re always thinking big about how to optimize drone delivery. Today, we’re thinking bigger: We’re introducing an additional aircraft into our fleet that will simplify and streamline larger orders.

With over 350,000 Wing deliveries completed to customers’ homes across three continents, we’re learning so much from our partners and the customers who receive our drone deliveries.

Today we offer the ability for customers to fulfill larger orders, beyond what fits on one aircraft. Order trends tell us that 70% of all US orders are delivered by one Wing aircraft, while 30% are delivered by two. To better serve that 30% and further optimize our business, we will be introducing an additional aircraft to complement our existing fleet. Think of it like how airlines operate different aircrafts for different routes: This new aircraft will streamline our deliveries of larger orders. For example, you could order last minute ingredients for dinner - pasta, marinara sauce, parmesan cheese, canned olives and garlic.

Just like other forms of transportation, drone delivery is not one-size-fits all. That’s why we’ve taken an approach to aircraft development that we call an Aircraft Library, where our team works on a variety of configurations and builds on core components we already use for our flight-proven aircraft. When we identify a need in the market—like a larger aircraft for larger orders—we can adapt our design to quickly and efficiently meet that need.

Our new aircraft is the latest example of how we’re using the design principles of the Aircraft Library to optimize drone delivery. By complementing Wing’s existing fleet of commercially operational aircraft, which carry about 2.5 pounds of payload, this additional aircraft will make it even easier for customers to get what they need, when they want it. The new aircraft has the same round-trip range of 12 miles and can cruise approximately 65 miles per hour, all while carrying a standard cardboard delivery box with a payload up to five pounds.

Of course, an aircraft is only as effective as the software and logistics networks that make it meaningful for businesses and customers. We’re designing the aircraft to work with the existing infrastructure and automation systems that support our current fleet.

It’s always been our vision to implement a multimodal drone delivery model, in the same way that ground delivery uses different vehicle sizes for different orders. We’re committed to making that vision a reality so more shoppers can experience the convenience of drone delivery. With the new aircraft carrying more food, medicine, and household essentials, customers in urban and suburban areas will be able to bundle their orders better—and receive them in one quick trip.

We’re excited to better serve our partners and customers with both aircraft. Wing intends to work with partners and regulatory stakeholders to introduce this new aircraft in our service areas within the next 12 months.

Wing and Walmart continue to expand service to millions of customers in Dallas-Fort Worth, amid new Dallas-wide FAA approvals

2024-01-09T14:03:00.000-08:00

We're kicking off 2024 by making drone delivery a reality for even more people: Wing and Walmart are expanding service to millions of customers, leveraging Wing’s airspace approvals that facilitate service across the Dallas-Fort Worth (DFW) community. Wing and Walmart will launch our newest drone delivery locations in the coming months and plan to complete the expansion within the year.

Last August, Wing and Walmart launched service together at two locations in DFW - reaching 60,000 homes via drone delivery. In our first 4 months of service, the response from Walmart customers has been overwhelmingly positive, using the service to order a range of products, including quick meals, groceries, household essentials, and over-the-counter medicines. And as our customers in Frisco and Lewisville know, on average those deliveries arrived in under 30 minutes and provided a convenient way to get what they needed, when they needed it.

“I had a Walmart delivery from Wing when we were running low on key ingredients for [a] recipe. We were so impressed that our eggs were delivered safely and likely had a safer journey than traveling by car in our trunk.” - Customer, Frisco, TX.

“We ordered through the app and received fresh guacamole and some candy within 15 mins. The kids enjoyed the excitement of watching the drone on the app until it dropped our package safely in our driveway. Will definitely use it again. Much quicker than a drive to the store.” - Customer, Frisco, TX.

Our first months delivering to Walmart customers have made one thing clear: Demand for drone delivery is real. For instance, on a given Sunday, Walmart customers placed over 130 orders to ensure they were prepped and ready for the big game - receiving items like chicken, sour cream, avocados and limes. Via the Walmart store in Frisco, our regular customers order on average ~2 times per week - with our top 25% customers averaging ~3 orders per week. Our average flight time is 5 minutes!

Wing’s drone delivery service offers a safe and convenient way to get your everyday needs (or last-minute forgotten items!) delivered nearly instantly, and our recent regulatory approvals mean we will be able to reach more customers throughout DFW.

In 2019, Wing was the first drone delivery company in the United States to receive a Part 135 Air Carrier Certificate. Now, Wing’s new environmental approval in the DFW metroplex marks the first time the FAA has approved an entire metro area for drone delivery. While Wing has already been serving customers at up to a 6-mile radius from nests in Frisco and Lewisville, Wing’s recent summary grant enables us to move toward beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) operations without visual observers across DFW and similar airspace surrounding other major U.S. cities, adding to the momentum of the drone delivery industry at large. This marks a paradigm shift in the way U.S. regulators are approaching approvals for these types of advanced BVLOS drone operations.

We believe 2024 will be the year of drone delivery—and our growing service with Walmart is a huge step forward. “Congratulations to Wing and Walmart on a growing partnership,” said City of Frisco Mayor Jeff Cheney. “In 2022, Wing picked Frisco to launch its first commercial drone delivery service in a major U.S. metro area. We consider our entire community an innovation lab and our residents embrace this service. Nowadays, Wing is more than a novelty in Frisco. The drone delivery service has evolved into a welcome, daily convenience for essentials like recipe ingredients, eggs, limes or over-the-counter medicines. The ease and efficiency of Wing’s drone delivery service enhances quality of life.”

If you live in the DFW area and you’d like to see if your home is available for drone delivery service, visit wing.com/walmart. To read more about today’s news from Walmart, visit their newsroom.

Wing Drone Delivery Soars into the 2023 Cotton Bowl

2023-12-30T05:07:00.000-08:00

The 2023 Cotton Bowl, held on December 29, 2023, was an exciting event that showcased the best of college football. As the official drone delivery sponsor, Wing proudly played a role in making this year's game even more special.

The Cotton Bowl is one of the oldest and most prestigious college football bowl games, dating back to 1937. Held annually at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, the game draws tens of thousands of fans and millions more viewers on TV.

As part of our sponsorship, Wing was honored to deliver the commemorative coin to Goodyear Cotton Bowl Athletic Association Chair, Dave Brown for the coin toss. Wing is committed to supporting the communities where we operate. We believe that drone delivery has the power to make a real difference in people's lives, and we are proud to use our technology to serve our communities.

Wing in 2023: The Launch Pad for Scaled Drone Operations

2023-12-22T09:32:00.000-08:00

2023 has been a year of increasingly palpable momentum as we have developed commercial integrations, announced new partners, and seen regulatory-firsts for airspace and operations.

We continue to pioneer new technology systems for drone delivery, from our modular, portable, lightweight nests that can be set up in a matter of minutes, to our new AutoLoader systems which integrate seamlessly with existing curbside pickup - without the need for a business to change their workflows or alter their infrastructure.

We expanded with DoorDash into Queensland, Australia; began Walmart grocery delivery in the Dallas-Fort Worth, Texas metroplex, and began exploring medical drone delivery with Apian in Ireland and the United Kingdom.

We testified before Congress to advocate for the right framework for regulating uncrewed aviation, encouraged common sense legislation that will allow drone delivery services to expand to more places in the U.S., and shared news of our summary grant from the FAA that will allow us to scale more effectively.

As a result of this momentum, more customers have experienced Wing’s version of drone delivery right as the demand for fast-mile delivery is surging. We’ve designed our system so all that’s needed from a customer is a small clear space on the property with vertical access to the sky - no infrastructure, QR codes, or landing pads required to receive Wing deliveries! Our aircraft are also capable of delivering fragile goods like eggs or even fresh hot coffee in under 30 minutes, allowing customers to get what they need, when they need it.

Wing has delivered to baseball stadiums in dense cities, to regulators in Geneva, and even to visitors at Oshkosh AirVenture, the world’s largest airshow which boasts some of the world’s busiest air traffic. Not to mention, a Virginia couple set the world record for most items delivered by drone.

2023 was the biggest year yet for drone delivery, and we couldn’t be more excited about 2024. New commercial drone approvals are moving forward every day, we’ve built our technology for scale, and we look forward to delivering to more customers in 2024.

‘Tis the Season: Wing Teams Up With Kelly Clarkson to Give Back For the Holidays

2023-12-21T10:33:00.000-08:00

The holiday spirit is in full swing! This week, we've partnered with The Kelly Clarkson Show to give back to the communities that we deliver to and spread the joy of Charity Giving Week.

We’re especially proud to team up with Kelly Clarkson, a Fort Worth native and philanthropist, by spotlighting one of our favorite Dallas-Fort Worth charities: Hugs Cafe, a McKinney-based non-profit that enhances the lives of adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities through training and employment.

On Monday’s broadcast, Wing CEO Adam Woodworth joined Kelly to present a $25,000 donation to Hugs Cafe. We’re committed to supporting and giving back to the places where we operate.

We want to extend a heartfelt thank you to everyone at The Kelly Clarkson Show for inviting us to join Charity Giving Week. Many charitable organizations rely on year-end donations to fulfill their missions and provide essential services, and it’s been inspiring to team up with Kelly Clarkson to shine a light on their causes.

Expanding DFW-area drone delivery to Lewisville with Walmart

2023-12-18T13:36:00.000-08:00

We are excited to share that we are now serving customers from an additional Walmart location in Lewisville (801 W Main St Lewisville, TX 75067), in the greater Dallas-Fort Worth area of Texas. On the heels of our original announcement and several months of service in Frisco, we’re now able to serve more customers – just in time for the holiday rush.

Wing's drone delivery service offers customers a convenient and safe way to get their everyday needs delivered quickly and efficiently. As our Frisco customers know, you will be able to get your deliveries in under 30 minutes. We're working with Walmart to offer everything from full lunches to missing ingredients or over-the-counter medicines, and the service is available 9am-5pm daily to customers within a 6 mile radius of the Frisco and Lewisville Supercenters.

To see if your home is available for service and learn how it works, visit wing.com/walmart. If you’re not yet eligible but you live in the area, don’t worry! We’ll be adding additional neighborhoods soon.

Drone delivery is a great option for people who are busy or who have difficulty getting to the store. And, at this time of year, 74% of shoppers want to save time running errands with near-instant delivery - especially the second run for missing items. Sour cream, rolls, hot dog buns, bell peppers, pineapple chunks, butter, salsa, ground beef, grilled chicken, and apples are all recent popular items in our Walmart service.

With over 350,000 residential drone deliveries globally to date, we’ve seen the impact of fast-mile delivery on customer lives. Here are a few things our customers have said about our service with Walmart so far:

"We have used it for ice cream treats in the middle of summer and it was so much faster than driving to the store and the ice cream was still rock hard cold."
"I had a delivery from Walmart when we were running low on key ingredients for [a] recipe. We were so impressed that our eggs were delivered safely and likely had a safer journey than traveling by car in our trunk."
"[The kids] love going out to the driveway and competing to see who spots the drone first."
"My first order was small grocery items that I used for a full lunch. My anticipation grew as I saw the count down appear and the tracking begin. It was amazing seeing the drone carefully drop off the package and gracefully fly away."

We are excited to continue expanding our drone delivery service to more customers in the Dallas-Fort Worth area. If you live in Lewisville, be sure to check out Wing's drone delivery service today!

Wing Wins FAA Authorization to Support Fast-Mile Delivery

2023-12-15T06:00:00.000-08:00

With a new year on the horizon, demand for drone delivery has never been higher. Three in four shoppers are interested in saving time this holiday season with Wing’s fast-mile delivery, and major retailers like Walmart are integrating our technology to serve their current and future needs.

Today, we’re pleased to share another milestone in our ability to meet that growing demand. Thanks to a recent update to our FAA exemptions, we will be able to safely scale more effectively in the US—which means we can bring the benefits of drone delivery to more people, more quickly.

Wing drone delivery is designed to integrate with existing last-mile logistics services in urban and suburban areas. Our system is designed with safety at its core, allowing us to fly in complex environments while sharing the airspace. As part of sharing the airspace, we’ve built a robust approach that safely separates our on-demand flights in time and space from each other and other aircraft using layered mitigations both before and during flight.

Last week, the FAA approved Wing’s detect and avoid (DAA) approach for our beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) operations without visual observers through a summary grant, which will allow our drones to use Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast-based (ADS-B) DAA inside a major area of Dallas airspace where traditional aircraft are required to continually broadcast their position. While Wing has already been serving customers at a 6 mile radius from nests in Frisco, this summary grant enables us to move toward BVLOS operations without visual observers across Dallas and similar airspace surrounding other major US cities, adding to the momentum of the drone delivery industry at large.

Wing flies within underutilized airspace over populated areas and conducts comprehensive aviation community outreach, recognizing and working with other users of the surrounding airspace. Our holistic approach to BVLOS flight has been used for commercial deliveries on three continents for several years. It is grounded in avoiding potential conflict before flights ever take off and utilizes in-flight DAA to add an additional layer of safety. Wing has demonstrated the effectiveness and safety of this approach with operational flight data, extensive simulation, and flight test.

Overall, the FAA’s approval for DAA and recognition of broader strategic deconfliction and UTM applications will allow us to operate more efficiently and work toward scaled operations nationwide. Starting with communities across the Dallas-Fort Worth area, this action supports our path toward expanding our service across the US. Wing’s fast-mile drone delivery at scale could save the Dallas-Fort Worth community several millions of hours each year which would have otherwise been spent driving to the store or delivering packages on the road.

We look forward to continued partnership with the FAA, service to the greater Dallas community, and a new year of growth, progress, and fast-mile deliveries!

How fast-mile delivery could help 74% of holiday shoppers save time on errands as interest in just-in-time goods surges

2023-12-06T06:00:00.000-08:00

Demand for last-minute grocery delivery has arrived, with 44% of respondents seeking an immediate, reliable assist on foods they need.

The holidays can be hectic. You’ve got a party in an hour but you forgot to buy a gift, and there’s no time to get ready and pick something up. Or maybe the dinner guests you’re hosting arrive in 30 minutes and you just realized you forgot the dinner rolls or, worse, the pie.

Situations like these are common. Wing recently polled 1,000 US consumers to learn more about the choices and challenges they face shopping for small items during the holidays.

We found that as they prep for parties and gatherings, they often find themselves rushing to stores for a few last-minute purchases. 43% say groceries are the most popular items they run to the store for at the last minute, for example, while 23% say the same about gifts.

But many would prefer to skip these frantic shopping trips altogether. We found that 74% of consumers are interested in saving time running holiday errands with near-instant delivery.

And it’s about more than just convenience. Survey respondents showed interest in using what we call “fast-mile delivery” — near-instant delivery for smaller orders — for speed, sustainability, and more, signaling an opportunity for retailers to meet consumers’ needs in the moment.

These are just a few of the insights we examine in our new survey-based report, “How fast-mile delivery could help 74% of shoppers save time running errands this holiday season.” Download the full report to learn more about shoppers’ appetite for fast-mile delivery during the holidays and beyond.

Halloween candy replenishments: just another way drone delivery can help

2023-10-31T15:35:00.005-07:00

I wanted to share a little bit about a helpful new drone delivery service that we’re trying out today: halloween candy refills.

I think we’ve all been there, when you underestimate the number of trick-or-treaters and suddenly your entire street is crawling with more little ghosts and goblins than you’ve ever seen before. Pretty soon, you realize you’re starting to run low on candy and the big kids haven’t even hit the block yet.

Up until now, you had a limited number of options: run to the store in the middle of all the excitement, or turn off your lights and become forever known as “that house.”

But that’s why this year we worked with Walmart to add halloween candy to the drone delivery catalog in the Dallas-Fort Worth area. The service is live right now, and real families are keeping their candy bowls stocked with drone delivery in 30 minutes or less.

It may just be one night a year, but this is the latest example of one of the little ways drone delivery can make life easier. So to all our orderers out there, I hope you have a safe, enjoyable, and candy-filled halloween!

Wing details (and demos) retail integration strategy

2023-10-05T07:40:00.004-07:00

If you look back at the series of technology announcements we’ve made over the past couple of years, you may start to notice a common thread that runs through them all: we’ve been optimizing our technology to integrate with some of the most significant retail operations in the world.

Each advancement has improved the system in its own right, but the effect is magnified when you put them all together. Today, I had the opportunity to take a step back and speak about this strategy for the first time publicly at UP.Summit, an annual gathering of aviation technologists held this year in the Dallas-Fort Worth area.

The timing and venue couldn’t be more appropriate, as Wing and Walmart are just now ramping up service together from our first Supercenter in the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex.

Drone delivery is intended to be complementary to existing last-mile delivery options, not a standalone service. To be successful, our technology must integrate with existing transportation infrastructure, the same way boxes frictionlessly flow from cargo planes, to delivery trucks, to customer doorsteps today. We don’t need to optimize for all deliveries, but the deliveries we do make (e.g., small and urgent items) need to be completed with greater simplicity, efficiency and cost effectiveness than have ever been possible to this point.

In short, seamless integration is the backbone of our scaling strategy.

So what does that look like? Through pilot programs, industry partnerships and hundreds of thousands of deliveries over the past four years, some of the core ingredients have become clear.

Real-time Demand Response: Our partners naturally experience peaks and valleys in demand, so we’ve reimagined our system to adapt by sharing resources across an entire region via the Wing Delivery Network.

Aircraft Library: Just like other modes of transportation, delivery drones will not be one-size-fits all. That’s why we’ve taken an approach to aircraft development that we call an Aircraft Library, where our team works on a variety of aircraft configurations using the same core components. The idea is to be ready to adapt the vehicle to meet our partners’ unique needs for things like payload capacity and range.

Workflow Integration: Store employees already have enough on their plate without adding an additional workflow for drone delivery. So we designed the AutoLoader to mimic the curbside pickup process, so drone delivery orders can be fulfilled using the same well established workflows happening at stores today.

E-commerce Integration: We’ve built a suite of APIs that offers the flexibility our partners need to integrate our service directly into their existing sales channels, so there’s no longer a need for standalone drone delivery apps.

Minimal On-site Infrastructure: On-site real estate is always at a premium, so we’ve shrunk our operational footprint through measures like establishing Remote Operations Centers, or hubs where pilots can oversee operations without needing to be housed at retail locations.

Highly Automated System: Our aircraft charge themselves, perform their own health checks, and adapt to changes in the environment. Our aim is to put drones out in the morning, and then have them perform deliveries all day long without additional human intervention.

We had the opportunity to show off many of these capabilities at UP.Summit today, where attendees watched drones complete deliveries across multiple AutoLoaders, delivery spots, and simultaneous flights.

If you didn’t get a chance to check it out there, we hope you’ll be able to experience it out in the real world someday very soon.

Key leadership hires as Wing scales-up drone delivery

2023-09-21T06:06:00.000-07:00

Over the past few years, we’ve been working hard to show what a scaled-up drone delivery system will look like. We’ve demonstrated a service that delivers upwards of 1,000 packages a day – or roughly one every 25 seconds. Earlier this year, we unveiled the Wing Delivery Network – our next generation operational model which is designed to enable high-volume drone delivery across major metro areas and will enable Wing to support millions of deliveries in the coming years. And just recently, we announced a partnership with Walmart that represents our largest expansion to date in the U.S. – bringing our service within reach of 60,000 people in the Dallas area.

As we take another step toward scale, we’re excited to share two key appointments to the Wing leadership team.

Martín Gomez has joined Wing as our new Chief Technology Officer (CTO). Martín will play an integral role leading Wing’s technology teams, specifically focusing on flight automation and software – two crucial elements of the Wing Delivery Network. Martín is joining a talented technical team at Wing and will help drive the innovations needed to bring the benefits of drone delivery to more people.

Martín joins Wing after a long career at Aurora Flight Sciences, where he was most recently Senior Chief Engineer. He has worked as an engineer and technical leader for 40 years, across the fields of uncrewed aircraft systems, spacecraft, and embedded systems development.

Martín, in his own words:

What excited you most about joining Wing?

I’m incredibly excited to join the strong technical team at Wing that has built and matured such a revolutionary drone delivery platform. My focus will be on supporting the team, building strong leaders, and making sure the right process and structure are in place to help the entire organization continue to innovate.

If you’re not at work, where are you?

Probably in my hangar! I’m an aviation "nut" and a dyed in the wool engineer. If I’m not in my hangar, there’s a good chance I’m flying!

Also joining Wing as Global Head of Partnerships is Cosimo Leipold. In this role, Cosimo will lead our business-to-business expansion efforts and partnerships with other organizations who share our vision for a multi-modal delivery system that harnesses the power of the sky above us to move small packages safely, efficiently, and conveniently. At Wing, a main focus of Cosimo’s will be helping retailers integrate automated drone delivery in a zero-friction way to realize the paradigm shift that Wing’s delivery represents.

Cosimo is no stranger to next-generation transportation solutions. He joins Wing after seven years at Nuro, a leading on-road autonomous delivery company, where he was a founding member. At Nuro, Cosimo led both the Strategy and Partnerships teams and helped the company secure multi-million dollar deals with some of the world's best known brands, including Walmart, Kroger, and UberEATS.

Cosimo in his own words:

What excited you most about joining Wing?

I’m most excited by what Wing can bring to our partners. Much has been said of the autonomous revolution, but for years it’s often been a question of “if”, “when” or “where” this might happen. For Wing, it’s no longer a question of if autonomous technology can have an impact, no longer a question of when, and no longer a question of where. The technology simply works, the business case is compelling, and the system is capable of operating nearly anywhere on earth. The opportunity for us to deliver both meaningful savings and durable strategic advantages to our partners is here.

If you’re not at work, where are you?

All things outdoors – Skiing, scuba diving, or hiking!

Join us in welcoming Martín and Cosimo to the Wing team as we continue to bring drone delivery to more partners and communities around the globe!