Air Canada is getting in the drone delivery business but it won’t be flying the aircraft. Air Canada Cargo, instead, will be offering its marketing and sales muscle to the rollout of Drone Delivery Canada. The deal between the two companies is for 10 years and Drone Delivery Canada wants to be among the first to capitalize on what is expected to be a multi-billion dollar industry. “This agreement greatly accelerates our commercial roll out in Canada,” said Tony Di Benedetto, CEO of Drone Delivery Canada. “Our drone delivery services will be extensively marketed as we work to establish operations across the country leveraging Air Canada Cargo’s brand presence and their established sales network and marketing reach.
The company plans to use drones in two ways. It will offer a “depot to depot” service for rural areas in which goods will be transported to and from central receiving locations in remote locations for things like mail, food, medicine and emergency care. In urban areas, it will deliver directly to consumers from retailers and suppliers. “DDC will benefit from Air Canada’s Cargo’s expertise and ability to promote and sell DDC services through Air Canada Cargo’s industry leading marketing and sales technology channels in Canada, which will support our efforts to establish DDC as Canada’s first national drone cargo solution,” Di Benedetto said.