Volocopter develops transport drone that can lift 200 kilograms

German drone manufacturer Volocopter has announced the VoloDrone. This is a variant of his previously developed air taxi that has been specially adapted to transport heavy loads of up to two hundred kilograms.

The VoloDrone has a range of forty kilometers. The maker is not only thinking of applications for logistics, such as carrying large packages and other loads, but also for the agricultural sector. The company cites the example of being able to spray crops. Special parts can be mounted under the VoloDrone for this. Furthermore, the large drone could be used for emergencies, to quickly deliver relief supplies.

The VoloDrone is an unmanned variant of the Volocopter. This is a so-called evtol, or electrically powered vertical take-off and landing aircraft, which performed a successful manned test flight at the end of August and should be able to be used as an air taxi. Like that model, the VoloDrone has eighteen rotors placed on a 9.2 meter wide rack. The drone is 2.3 meters high, is powered by lithium-ion batteries.

Volocopter is currently in customer testing and has completed the first test flights for real-world scenarios. The means of transport must become available ‘soon’. Within about five years, the manufacturer hopes to be able to produce the model on some scale.