German drone delivery company Wingcopter and Spright, a subsidiary of American air medical service provider Air Methods, have announced a new commercial agreement worth more than US$16m (£11.8m).
As part of the deal Spright is acquiring a large fleet of Wingcopter’s new delivery drone to meet the increasing demand for medical drone delivery solutions throughout the US. The contract makes Wingcopter the exclusive provider of fixed wing eVTOL delivery drone technology to Spright for use within its operations.
Spright, in turn, becomes the exclusive provider of maintenance, repair and overhaul for the Wingcopter 198 to third parties in the US. The agreement builds on the strategic partnership between the two companies that was announced in August 2021.
Tom Plümmer, co-founder and CEO of Wingcopter, said: “This multi-million-dollar commercial agreement with Spright is a clear proof that the Wingcopter 198 has a perfect product-market-fit.
“We are proud to enable large-scale drone delivery across the United States with this strong partnership. The projected compound annual growth rate (CAGR) for the drone delivery market of more than 50 % to a total volume of almost US$40bn in 2030 underlines the rapid adoption of eVTOL technology for last-mile logistics.”
Additionally, Spright is creating a drone-based, healthcare-specific delivery network, leveraging an existing infrastructure of more than 300 bases which serve hundreds of hospitals, across 48 states in predominantly rural areas.
Joseph Resnik, president of Spright, added: “We are fortunate to have Wingcopter on board as our aircraft technology partner. With their industry-leading eVTOL aircraft design, Wingcopter brings a level of maturity needed to address the complex and diverse demands of the US healthcare market.
“We are confident that our combined strengths will deliver innovative, time-saving solutions to meet the needs of our customers and their communities.”
