Rwanda is sent to get the world’s first drone airport and the first one is set to be ready by 2020 and is set to kick off next year. The fleets of drones are designed to carry crucial goods such as medicine. They drones will be cheap, simple and robust, and will have payloads of up to 100 kg (220lb), while the droneports will function as hubs to allow recharging, cargo loading and drop-off, as well as repairs.
The project is the brainchild of Jonathan Ledgard, head of the Afrotech project at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (EPFL), and world-renowned British architect Norman Foster. Each droneport will take two to three years to build, at a projected cost of about $300,000.
Two types of drones have been designed, with a larger version capable of a 100kg payload to enter service in a second phase, around 2025. The drones will fly at a projected speed of about 90 km/h over lakes, rivers and mountain ridges, and offer extremely competitive costs compared to road transportation. See the artistic impression images of Rwanda’s drone airport below.
