The ultralight and light aircraft market, which includes drones, is estimated to reach $17.29 billion by 2029, according to a new report by MarketsandMarkets. It’s currently worth $10.17 billion.
This market is mostly driven by the increasing demand for aircraft and advancements in traditional aircraft. It’s ideal for transporting goods and equipment.
North America is projected to grow at the highest compound annual growth rate during the forecast period.
Drones are a rapidly growing segment, as this technology offers solutions in areas like surveillance, inspection, and crop monitoring. These are all domains ripe for logistics optimization.
Market opportunities and challenges
There are ample opportunities for logistics businesses in the drone industry. The civil and commercial segments dominate the area, mainly due to the high business demand.
There are a number of innovations in autonomous navigation, battery life, payload capacity, and safety features. Walmart and Amazon are particularly known for their advancements in the drone delivery space.
Amazon drone delivery
Earlier this year, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) regulator gave Amazon’s Prime Air drone the go-ahead to operate Beyond the Visual Line of Sight (BVLOS).
What does it mean for the industry? Regulators are now stepping up their regulations, formulating new ones for drones to allow more complex parcel deliveries.
Wing delivers medicine with a drone
One of the leaders in drone last-mile delivery, Wing, is also now transporting NHS blood samples in London.
In its latest research paper, Wing suggests that businesses could save up to 60% on delivery costs by switching to autonomous systems.
Retail and groceries are known to the drone delivery sector, but news sectors like healthcare, construction and infrastructure are also exploring ways to benefit from this growing industry.
NOW READ: DP World Australia seals deal to acquire Silk Logistics
Share this article
About the author
Mia is a multi-award-winning journalist. She has more than 14 years of experience in mainstream media. She's covered many historic moments that happened in Africa and internationally. She has a strong focus on human interest stories, to bring her readers and viewers closer to the topics at hand.
