Drone pilot project in Wusterhausen: Chance or technical breakdown?

Drone pilot project in Wusterhausen: Chance or technical breakdown?

Wusterhausen/Dosse, Deutschland - The test phase of the innovative drone pilot project in Wusterhausen/Dosse has recently ended. Under the name "Stadt-Land-Drone", the delivery drone "Marktschwalbe" was used for a year to transport rolls, sausage and drugstore to Trieplatz and Barsikow. This project was supported by the Federal Ministry of Food and Agriculture with a funding of 500,000 euros, whereby around 150,000 euros were specially provided for testing transport drones. The approach aimed at supplying remote districts with food and goods of daily needs in order to improve local supply in rural areas. RBB24 reports that a total of around 50 test and delivery flights were carried out.

However, the technical implementation of the project turned out to be challenging. Technical problems restricted by difficulties in the precision landing significantly impaired the drone technology. Due to these challenges, the planned two deliveries per week could not be implemented as desired. In order to optimize the performance of the drone system, one switched from a Portuguese to a German manufacturer in spring, which brought some logistical advantages. Despite all of this, test buyers reported disappointments, since the drone often did not land as expected and orders were often delivered by car instead of the drone. Meanwhile, local retailers and business owners support the project to strengthen retail in the region.

overview of the project

The pilot project in Wusterhausen/Dosse, which was planned until February 2025, was launched as part of the funding measure "country -consumed - new ways to supply in rural areas". The project partners include the DRONEGY company from Siegen, which is responsible for permits, insurance, training courses and flight operations, as well as the air laboratory from Berlin, which takes over the project control and the development of an order platform. The first orders from the districts of Blankenberg, Trieplatz and Barsikow started in March 2024, with regular deliveries on market days. also aims to analyze the effects on retail and local supply.

The municipality of Wusterhausen/Dosse has already received approval from the Federal Aviation Office in order to extend the project to further locations. Despite the previous challenges, one would like to continue the project. However, the need for new financing is currently in space in order to ensure the implementation of drone deliveries.