Wing and Apian partner to create medical drone delivery service in Ireland and explore opportunities in the UK

Speed and timeliness are crucial when delivering vital medical and pharmaceutical items to patients and hospitals. Wing and Apian, a United Kingdom-based company connecting healthcare providers with drone operators and services, have partnered to begin medical drone delivery services in Ireland and jointly explore opportunities in the UK. We expect to begin working with hospitals and other care providers in Dublin later this year. 

Over the coming months, Wing and Apian will work with healthcare and pharmacy partners to create a rapid medical delivery network in South Dublin. This efficient network, leveraging Wing’s aircraft and automation, will serve to improve the patient experience while reducing traffic congestion and emissions in the community. We look forward to engaging with the local community and stakeholders as we develop the operations and begin flights. 

Wing’s highly automated delivery drones are well-suited for a range of useful healthcare applications; our technology is designed to deliver pharmacy items, laboratory samples, and medical devices and supplies very quickly in urban and suburban environments.  

Apian is a healthcare logistics company founded by a team of doctors from the UK’s National Health Service (NHS). The Apian platform integrates both healthcare and aviation systems, creating a fully automated, on-demand delivery system that improves patient health outcomes and staff well-being.

Together, Wing and Apian believe that healthcare should benefit from on-demand delivery much like consumers do in their personal lives. Medical drone delivery can provide a faster, more reliable, lower-cost solution than ground-based alternatives. We aim to address speed, inefficiencies, and also environmental challenges by reducing vehicles on the road. Wing’s operations require very little infrastructure and can be set up in a range of spaces, making them suitable for a wide variety of healthcare facilities. 

Regulatory progress in the European Union and the UK continues to open doors toward safe and beneficial drone services at scale. This operation will be Wing’s second in Ireland, following the public demonstration services in Lusk, where thoughtful input and the collaborative  approach from the community have provided invaluable feedback on the future of drone delivery. At Wing, we also look forward to future opportunities in the UK after years of collaboration with regulators and contributions to numerous policy forums.

Drone delivery in healthcare has a tremendous opportunity for scale, both in operational service and in benefits delivered to patients and providers. We’re pleased to invest in these outcomes alongside Apian.