Delivering the Future – Drones to Your Door

As a technology leader, we are always working on opportunities for positive impact in the lives of people all over the world. There are many ongoing projects and ideas through which our business development and technology teams at Vodafone are reaching into the future - solving challenges that promise the biggest benefits.

Christoph Lindenschmidt is a Senior Business Development Manager at Vodafone, working on commercial drone services. While he notes that he is not an engineer, he says he has always been fascinated by the kinds of technical innovations that can make the biggest impacts in everyday life: “The idea of using drones for quick and efficient deliveries is exciting,” he says. “And the fact that the Vodafone network can be such an important part of the solution is fantastic.”

The Network Advantage

Christoph’s focus is on working to make sure 5G services can add real value to commercial drone flight operations. This starts with helping to satisfy the regulatory challenges of unmanned flights by helping to plan safe drone routes. He explains: “Our DroNet service uses anonymised movement data from the mobile network to help operators optimise and approve their flight routes, and minimise risk.

“We have already taken part in a project at two village sites that implemented the first delivery system for consumer goods in Germany. We worked with Wingcopter, REWE and the Frankfurt University of Applied Science to equip drones with Vodafone connectivity and test the DroNet service.”

This project ran from October 2023 up until March 2024. During that time, 150 orders were delivered and over 2,500 flight kilometres were logged. Christoph reports that the project was a success: “The main aims were to show demand for drone deliveries, and prove it could be a technical and operational reality. Open and trusting cooperation with our partners was decisive in this.

“We learned so much. We learned about what was required from a mobile communications infrastructure, how our DroNet service can add value, and that there really is a demand for such services; the public response was great.

“The flight operations and integration into the local airspace worked excellently, and feedback from the authorities was positive, which is important for future approvals. I’m confident that once the regulatory issues are overcome, this kind of service can be commercially successful.”

From Order to Delivery

According to Christoph, the most exciting thing about the whole project was simply seeing it all come together: “We saw a complete, functioning drone delivery system in operation. We weren’t just working on the flight - it was everything from demand and ordering, to delivery; it was about meeting real demand under real world conditions.”

Is this really the future then? “There are so many useful applications where drones can make life better,” says Christoph. “There are uses in medical logistics, agriculture, emergency services, and lots more. However, given the prevalence of online shopping, commercial drone deliveries are always going to capture the public imagination. It could easily be the answer to sustainable and flexible future services.

“Of course, it’s crucial that drones function safely, reliably, and efficiently. That’s what we’re working towards. It’s very exciting.”