Headquartered out of Bern, Switzerland the Swiss Post is the country’s second largest employer.  And they have become a world leader when it comes to logistically planning mail routes using the best of modern technologies.  They have fully embraced the idea of using drones to transport packages.  The Swiss Post has partnered with drone manufacturer Matternet to successfully transport medical supplies in an efficient manner.  However, due to two recent incidents all Swiss Posts drone deliveries have been temporarily suspended.

The Swiss Post realizes that drones are not yet at the point where they can take over for the 130 parcels delivered yearly throughout the country.  But when it comes to making on demand deliveries for medical centers, drones have been saving precious time.  Laboratory samples or medical supplies being transported by the traditional car method can take 45 minutes or more.  Meanwhile that same delivery can be completed in a matter of minutes by drone.  The packages being transported by these drones are items that are extremely time sensitive.

The Swiss Post and Matternet first began transporting lab and medical samples between Lugano’s 2 EOC hospital groups.  Since the beginning of the program there have been more than 2,000 successful drone flights between the 2 hospitals.  In 2018 they expanded the program to connect hospital campuses in Zurich and Bern.  In Lugano the drones make deliveries daily while in Zurich the drones are launched 5-10 times a day on weekdays and the schedule is still being worked out for Bren.  For all of the drone routes, flying over forested areas are used whenever possible.

The drones they use are quadrocopters that securely nestle the bright yellow Swiss Post parcel in it’s undercarriage.  All of the drones are also equipped with emergency parachutes.  If a drone were to have a failure of some sort, it’s motor will shut off and the parachute will automatically deploy to make sure the drone lands as safely as possible.  On January 25th of this year one of the drones carrying laboratory samples crashed into Lake Zurich.  It was a controlled crash, meaning the drone activated it’s emergency protocols exactly as Matternet protocol is set up to work.  The motors shut off, emergency lights began to flash, and the parachute deployed allowing the drone to gently float down to the lake.

The Swiss Transportation Safety Investigation Board (STSB) ran a formal investigation into the incident while all drone deliveries were put on hold.  The STSB determined that the power supply to the drone’s GPS was short circuited causing the failure.  Swiss Post and Matternet resumed drone deliveries on April 15 once a redundant power source and other modifications were made to the drones.  All seemed to be going well until yet another drone crashed in early May, this one being a bit more troubling.
The exact cause of the crash has not yet been determined, but the Swiss Post suggested the failure may have been due to wind interference.  About 2 minutes after the drone launched, it’s emergency system was engaged.  The motor shut off and the parachute was deployed.  But the single tether that connects the parachute to the drone was almost immediately severed as it was deployed by something sharp on the body of the drone.  The drone then hard crashed in a wooded area about 50 yards away from a group of kindergarten children playing in Zurich University’s quarter.  Fortunately nobody was hurt, but many concerns were raised.

In response to this latest crash the Swiss Post has grounded all drone deliveries indefinitely.  They released a statement in which they said, “Safety is our top priority. That’s why Swiss Post is now establishing an expert council. It will examine all processes relating to the risk and safety management of drone flights.  In due course, we will provide more information on this process, the measures implemented and the resumption of flights.  We rely on Matternet, as our technology partner, and expect the security mechanisms to function.”  Some of the requests the Swiss Post is making of Matternet is to use 2 tethers instead of 1 and have them reinforced with metal braiding.  They also requested the drones to have a whistle on them that will notify people near by in a loud clear manner if there is a problem, not just flashing lights.

Matternet is regarding the problem just as seriously.  The California based company said that never in any of their research and testing had a parachute failed in this way, and the fact that it happened is unacceptable.  They stated, “We had never seen a failure like that in the past, neither in our expansive testing nor in commercial operations.  At Matternet we take the safety of our technology and operations extremely seriously. A failure of the parachute system is a clear failure of our safely mechanisms and we are taking all the appropriate measures to address it.”
As of now all drone deliveries have been suspended via the Swiss Post throughout Switzerland.  But as leaders in this logistical field they will surely be finding ways to ensure the future continuation of this very beneficial program.

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