KDDI Corp. and Japan Post Co. have carried out a trial using a post office in a central Japanese city as a coordination hub for drones supporting disaster relief. The two companies aim to expand the model nationwide in the coming period.
According to details from the trial, the selected post office served as the launch point and coordinator for drone flights, transporting relief supplies and supporting areas affected by disasters. Leveraging the nationwide network of post offices is expected to shorten response times to isolated communities, especially when roads are cut off.
The two companies said they will continue to evaluate the trial results to refine operating procedures before considering a coordinated rollout in other regions. The effort is one of several attempts to apply drones to logistics and disaster response in Japan, a country frequently hit by earthquakes, storms, floods and landslides.
