United Parcel Service is delivering packages to new heights, literally by purchasing 10 vertical electric take-off and landing aircraft from Beta Technologies.
In an announcement Wednesday, UPS in Atlanta said it will test eVTOLs for use in its Express Air delivery network, focusing on small and medium markets. The company will operate eVTOLs under the Flight Forward division, which also explores drone delivery.
The new type of aircraft, which looks like a cross between a plane and a helicopter, “unlocks new business models that do not exist today,” Bala Ganesh, vice president of UPS Advanced Technology Group, told CNBC. “For example, you can see a future in which it transports, say 1,000 pounds, 1,500 pounds to rural hospitals” and landing on a heliport instead of an airport.
Beta Technologies of Vermont will design and build the eVTOLs, which will be delivered to UPS in 2024, pending certification from the Federal Aviation Administration. Beta will also provide landing pads and rechargeable batteries. UPS has the option to purchase up to 150 other eVTOLs. The transaction price was not disclosed. EVTOLs can fly up to 250 miles at 170 mph on a single charge.
“We also thought about some urgent moments, such as bypassing traffic in New York and then moving it directly to our building on 43rd Street, so that we can avoid congestion,” Ganesh said. . “It will not be suitable for all packages, but for certain use cases: willingness to pay and urgency, we could potentially think about going to those areas.”
EVTOLs would be used similarly to small fixed-wing aircraft, which have a capacity of 500 to 3,000 pounds. UPS said it initially intends to use them in smaller markets and create a series of short routes or a long route to meet customer needs. EVTOLs will have an operational advantage over small planes, according to Ganesh, because they are designed to accommodate transport containers, which allow packages to move faster in many cases.
“Smaller planes are not usually containerized. They have no container, so they load a package into these aircraft, then onto its grounds, then it has to be unloaded loaded into a truck or another vehicle and then driven to another location, recourse again, reloaded into the wagon that it delivers it, “Ganesh said.
Beta Technologies founder Kyle Clark said his team worked with UPS to help transform the way packages are managed on the go.
“We combine simple, sleek design and advanced technology to create a reliable, zero-emission operational aircraft that will revolutionize the way cargo is moving,” Clark said in a statement. “Using vertical takeoffs and landings, we can transform relatively small spaces in existing UPS installations into a small air supply network without the noise or operational emissions of traditional aircraft.”
Sustainability has become increasingly important since Carol Tome became CEO of UPS in June last year. In its 2020 annual report, UPS said its goal is to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by 12% and source 25% of its renewable electricity needs by 2025.
UPS announced in January 2020 a commitment to purchase up to 10,000 electric vehicles from Arrival Group, based in London and Charlotte, North Carolina. EVTOL batteries will also be compatible with those vehicles. Even when the first life cycle of the batteries in the aircraft ends, they can still be used in electric vehicles.
“It just creates easier operating models, which makes things easier to implement and manage as we move forward,” said Ganesh, “creating newer ways of handling that give us more flexibility and optimism.” , reduces our costs ”.