(JW Insights) Jul 7 -- Chinese on-demand food delivery behemoth Meituan's fourth-generation drone was unveiled on July 5, and it is able to deliver takeaways within a maximum radius of 3 kilometers within 15 minutes and offers a whole new low-altitude logistics solution for cities, reported Yicai Global on July 6.

Drones will be a key addition to Beijing-based Meituan's delivery network and assist couriers in their daily tasks, the report said. The small multi-rotor unmanned aerial vehicle can carry a maximum load of 2.5 kilograms and travel up to 10 kilometers when fully loaded.

“The fourth-generation drone can operate in light rain, moderate snow, strong winds and temperatures as low as minus 50 centigrade,” the Yicai Global report said, citing Hu Meng, head of Meituan's drone hardware department. “It has twice the service life, can fly distances 35 percent further than before and is much quieter, with the noise generated when flying reduced by 50 percent.”

Drones won't replace deliverymen because the takeout economy is growing fast and demand is huge, said Mao Yinian, director of Meituan's drone division. Unmanned aerial vehicles are unlikely to deliver more than 10 percent of orders, even if they are deployed in every city in the country, and they will help raise the efficiency of couriers, said the Yicai Global report.

(Li PP/Yuan XY)