The Turkish Post and Telegraph Organization (PTT), which has ranked seventh in world cargo transportation with innovations in recent years, will further raise the bar with the drone cargo transportation services it will initiate soon. Following stunt flying at Teknofest, the PTT will perform its first test flights between Bostancı in Kadıköy district and the Prince's Islands.
The cargo transportation drone project, first announced by PTT General Manager Kenan Bozgeyik last year, has gained momentum recently. Altınay, one of Turkey's domestic defense industry players and drone manufacturer, which has long worked with the PTT, showcased the drone for cargo transportation for the first time at SAHA EXPO 2018, a three-day defense exhibition that closed Sept. 15. On Sept. 20 at Teknofest the PTT will conduct stunt flying of the drone for transportation for the first time. Teknofest is a technology festival that runs Sept. 20-23 on the premises of Istanbul's new airport.
The drone developed by Turkish engineers with completely local and national means will be used predominantly at points where geographical conditions hinder transportation. Thus, the PTT will first carry out drone cargo transportation over water. The PTT will use drone in carrying cargo between Bostancı and the Princes' Islands and the office also plans to deploy the drone for cargo operations on Lake Sapanca. While the authorization process for both flights continues, water is preferred for safety purposes in first tests. Drone transportation will be practiced in locations where geographical conditions are appropriate or in particular where there is a problem with products or transportation.
Drones to be used by the PTT will be autonomously controlled from a center without a driver, with a control stick. The address to where they will deliver cargo will be defined on drones. After the package reaches the designated spot of the defined task, drones will be able to return to the region where they take off, again without a driver.
The PTT has taken a step forward on its way to becoming a global brand with drone application for cargo transportation. Currently, the PTT reaches all corners of Turkey with more than 42,000 employees, nearly 5,000 offices, 156 mobile offices, nearly 3,000 cash points and more than 9,000 vehicles.
Drone cargo transport will shorten distances in cargo transportation and should further increase the PTT's profit rate of TL 642 million ($104 million) in 2017. The company will emphasize technology in the new period.
The PTT has already made changes to the automation of registered mail items, artificial intelligence-based cargo transportation services, vehicle tracking system and handheld terminal via the Milli Kargom line, raising its cargo and postal services above world standards. Therefore, the company will also achieve a significant rise in cargo revenues.