Walmart and Wing have announced the expansion of their drone delivery service. Now, millions of customers in Atlanta, Charlotte, Houston, Orlando and Tampa will have the opportunity to receive their orders via UAS. This makes Walmart the first retailer to scale drone delivery across five states: Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, North Carolina and Texas.
“As we look ahead, drone delivery will remain a key part of our commitment to redefining retail. We’re pushing the boundaries of convenience to better serve our customers, making shopping faster and easier than ever before,” said Greg Cathey, senior vice president of Walmart U.S. Transformation and Innovation. “This expansion of our drone delivery service marks a significant milestone in that journey. As the first retailer to scale drone delivery, Walmart is once again demonstrating its commitment to leveraging technology to enhance our delivery offerings with a focus on speed.” The new drone service will launch at 100 stores, building on the existing operations in Northwest Arkansas and Dallas-Fort Worth. Through an agreement with established drone provider Wing, Walmart can deliver a faster, more efficient service to even more customers — ensuring they get what they need, when they need it, in a way that’s both safe and sustainable. Wing operates within FAA guidelines, flying their drones Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVLOS) up to a 6-mile aircraft range from the store.
“This is real drone delivery at scale,” said Adam Woodworth, CEO of Wing. “People all around the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex have made drone delivery part of their normal shopping habits over the past year. Now we’re excited to share this ultra-fast delivery experience with millions more people across many more U.S. cities.”
Among the most frequently delivered products via drone:
- Fresh fruit, including bananas, lemons and limes
- Great Value eggs
- Ice cream
- Pet food
