The Ministry of Transport, the Global Navigation Satellite System (GLONASS) and Chinese partners will work on developing cargo transportation using drones, with this project launched today, Russian President Vladimir Putin said.
"We need to start setting standards now for the autonomous transportation of civilian cargo using drones. Approaches to developing this essentially low-altitude logistics system in the economy will be worked out as part of a special project. Participants will include the transport ministry, the GLONASS domestic company and our Chinese partners. As far as I know, this joint effort was launched today on the sidelines of the forum," Putin said.
On Wednesday, the Russian Transport Ministry announced a competition at the Eastern Economic Forum to select a region for an experiment in organizing unmanned logistics. Specifically, the first phase will involve creating a model for the application of unmanned aerial logistics, and the project is expected to expand in the future through integration with autonomous systems on land and water.
GLONASS, in turn, told RIA Novosti that it would create a digital platform based on the ERA-GLONASS state information system to manage low-altitude airspace as part of the project. A partnership agreement was signed with the Shenzhen Urban Transport Planning Center (SUTPC) on the sidelines of the forum.
It is necessary to set standards for the transportation of civilian cargo using drones, the president said.
"With the development of unmanned aviation, the low-altitude skies are becoming as busy a transport artery as railways and waterways. We need to establish standards for autonomous civilian cargo transportation using drones right now," Putin said.
