Alphabet subsidiary X will carry out testing of food delivery using unmanned aerial vehicles on the campus of Virginia Tech this fall.

The flights will be the first tests of X's Project Wing involving external users in the U.S. and represent its first collaboration with a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)-approved unmanned aircraft test site.

Extended flight tests at Virginia Tech are expected to yield technical, safety and user-experience data on drone food delivery. Image credit: Pixabay.Extended flight tests at Virginia Tech are expected to yield technical, safety and user-experience data on drone food delivery. The university and Project Wing will share findings from the research with the FAA.

Project Wing has already conducted thousands of test flights in private airfields with a prototype drone to demonstrate that it can fly for long distances and deliver packages safely and precisely. Now, under realistic delivery conditions at Virginia Tech, researchers will study vehicle performance, operational details and navigational accuracy. The flights will also offer insights into customers' experience of receiving food delivered by air.

“Package delivery by drone, especially for rapid turnaround operations like food delivery, is one of the most challenging applications of this technology,” says Mark Blanks, director of the Virginia Tech Mid-Atlantic Partnership. “Efficient operations require the aircraft to be operated beyond visual line of sight of the pilot, over densely populated areas and with many aircraft in the air at the same time. This early-stage research effort with Project Wing will address many of the numerous policy and safety issues that are currently under development across the industry and by the FAA."

Ultimately, Project Wing is focused on developing and mainstreaming drone delivery of everyday goods, which it believes could be cheaper, faster and more environmentally friendly than ground transportation.