Aster DM Healthcare ties up with Skye Air Mobility, a drone logistics firm

Bengaluru: Aster DM Healthcare, India’s leading private healthcare service providers, has signed a partnership alliance with Skye Air Mobility, a leading drone-technology-based logistics firm for transforming healthcare delivery landscape in India. Both the companies signed the partnership agreement in the presence of Ankit Kumar, CEO, Skye Air Mobility, Dr Prashanth N, Chief Operating Officer, Aster RV Hospital and Ramesh Kumar, Chief Executive Officer, Aster CMI Hospital. According to the agreement, Aster DM Healthcare will leverage Skye’s drone technology for delivery of diagnostic samples and medicines. The trial run was successfully kicked off with the 7-days BVLOS (Beyond Visual Line of Sight) carrying the medicines and diagnostic samples. The trial runs began on May 14 and are expected to continue until May 20 from Aster RV Hospital (JP Nagar) to Aster Clinics located within Bengaluru city. This is one of the early live use cases of drone technology in Indian healthcare. Skye Air’s flagship product ‘Skye Ship One’ is being used for these trials. With a vision to transform India’s healthcare delivery landscape, Aster DM healthcare decided to use innovative solution to address the current challenges in healthcare delivery system. The trials jointly undertaken by Aster DM Healthcare and Skye Air will showcase the efficiency of drone technology to facilitate faster deliveries of medical and diagnostic samples. This partnership is expected to overcome the logistical barriers while reducing turn-around-time. Following the successful completion of the 7-day BVLOS trials, Skye Air targets to undertake approximately 80 flights, each carrying blood samples and medicines for Aster Clinics. The drone-led delivery system is executed through a designated Skye Air cold chain professional to first load the medicine and diagnostic sample in a temperature-controlled payload box. This payload box is then loaded in the drone which is then directed by drone pilots at the command centre through a predetermined route to a fixed landing pad. Commenting on the success of the BVLOS trial runs so far, Ankit Kumar, CEO, Skye Air Mobility said, “These trials aim to demonstrate a faster supply chain for sample collection by effectively using drone delivery technology. The technology illustrates the cost effectiveness and reduction in delivery time. “Therefore, it acts as a case model on how the unmanned aerial systems could help Aster hospitals better serve its patient’s needs and provide opportunities for network improvements that generate efficiencies thereby enabling it to grow its business. These trial runs will result in commercial rollouts in different locations for the healthcare service provider across India.” Skye Air Mobility, a Drone Delivery logistics firm based in New Delhi is changing the face of logistics as it continues to achieve its key milestones cutting across diverse sectors such as healthcare, diagnostics, ecommerce, quick-commerce and Agri-commodity delivery. These trials by Skye Air and Aster DM Healthcare runs will result in commercial rollouts in different locations for the healthcare service provider across India. (UNI)                                                     -{Pics -courtesy- Facebook}