A drone from the Swiss company Rigi Tech, operated by BCN Drone Center and managed by Biomedical Logistics, is conducting a pilot test in the regions of Ribera d'Ebre, Terra Alta, and Baix Ebre. This initiative, running until July 30th, explores the creation of drone air corridors for healthcare transport.
The test is supported by the Secretaria de Telecomunicacions i Transformació Digital of the Generalitat de Catalunya, the Fundació i2CAT, the Fundació TIC Salut i Social, and the Institut Català de la Salut (ICS) in Terres de l'Ebre. It is part of a government strategy that previously included a pilot phase in the Lleida Pyrenees to establish Spain's first drone healthcare transport corridor.
The project involves point-to-point flights between the primary care centers (CAP) of Flix, Gandesa, Horta de Sant Joan, and the regional hospital of Móra d'Ebre. It also includes connections with the Verge de la Cinta Hospital in Tortosa. Following the tests, the feasibility of scaling up the project will be analyzed.
During the trials, duplicate blood samples are taken at the CAPs. One sample travels by land (conventional method) and the other by drone to the hospital in Móra d'Ebre. Subsequently, the results are compared to assess the impact of transport time and cargo stability using drones.
Similarly, pathology samples (biopsies, cytologies) are being transported to the Verge de la Cinta Hospital in Tortosa. Already analyzed biopsies are used for comparison, and soon cytologies will be duplicated from Gandesa.
The third type of cargo has been pharmaceutical material between the hospitals of Tortosa and Móra d'Ebre. In the future, the range of transportable materials is expected to expand.
The drone used, a Rigi Tech model with operational authorization SAIL III from the State Air Safety Agency (AESA), performs vertical take-offs and landings. Once at 50 meters, it flies horizontally at an average speed of 104 km/h with a range of 100 km. It can carry up to 3 kg of cargo, equivalent to 150 blood vials with ice.
