Wendy’s is starting a new drone delivery program in Christiansburg, Virginia on Thursday, where residents will be able to choose airflight as an option on DoorDash. Autonomous drones from Wing will fly 65 mph while holding Bacanotors, Frosties, and other items before gently dropping them onto the front lawn of a customer.
The roughly 21,000 residents of Christiansburg will be the first town in America to have Wendy’s flown to their doorstep. A DoorDash spokesperson told Gizmodo over email that most of Wendy’s items will qualify for drone delivery, even delicate items like beverages and chili. If an order has too many items, a team of three drones will deliver your order.
Most homes within a 2.5-mile radius of the 2355 N. Franklin Street Wendy’s location will be eligible. The homes must also have a 2-meter clearing on their property, like a driveway or front lawn, to make a perfect delivery landing pad. All deliveries should take between 10 and 30 minutes, according to DoorDash.
The Wendy’s collaboration is DoorDash’s first time offering drone delivery for hot, fresh foods in the United States. There are increased challenges with drones delivering these items, as time and delicacy are especially important. If the pilot goes well, it could revolutionize the gig economy and delivery industry.
Drone delivery is becoming an increasingly popular option for last-mile delivery services. Walgreens, Walmart, and Amazon have also adopted the technology to offer drone delivery to their customers in select cities. Wing promotes its drones as being faster and more sustainable than traditional delivery services.
The rollout of DoorDash’s drone delivery in Christiansburg, Virginia comes after a year-long test in Australia. Wing’s drones were used there to deliver grocery items, pantry staples, snacks, and other items.
Christiansburg, Virginia is a good starting point for the drone program because it’s a relatively quiet town, with not too many large buildings to block drones. Most homes seem to have a decent-sized lawn, so it should be an easy target for the drones. Wendy’s has not commented on whether this feature will be rolling out to other stores anytime soon.