XPost: rec.arts.sf.written, rec.arts.sf.science
From: YourName@YourISP.com
In article , John F. Eldredge
wrote:
> On Tue, 11 Mar 2014 14:42:31 -0700, David Friedman wrote:
> > On 3/9/14, 1:00 PM, Greg Goss wrote:
> >> wdstarr@panix.com (William December Starr) wrote:
> >>
> >>>> >>Except the drones almost certainly don't have the range to operate
> >>>> >>anywhere but places like Manhattan.
> >>> >
> >>> >You load the goods onto the drones and the drones onto a cheap slow
> >>> >cargo plane. Get near the target area and toss 'em out.
> >>> >
> >>> >-- wds (I'm sure the Department of Homeland Security won't object.)
> >> For one-way deliveries (the kind DHS cares about), that would work.
> >> But for more normal cargo operations, you generally want the drone back
> >> after the delivery, and this model doesn't work so well.
> >
> > Why can't the drones be programmed to deliver then return to the cargo
> > plane?
>
> How long do you plan to have the plane flying in circles overhead,
> waiting for all of the drones to return? Also, the package-delivery
> drones I have seen pictures of look like their top maximum speed would
> likely be lower than the minimum speed a conventional aircraft can fly.
> If you were to have the mothership be a helicopter, it would be able to
> hover in place, but its downdraft would likely be enough to prevent any
> small drones from being able to rejoin it.
You land the cargo plane at a big enough airstrip, then throw the
drones out the back and wait for them to come back to the central
location.
Even better, land at the airstrip, throw the parcels into a fleet of
waiting small vans which are then driven off by humans to deliver the
parcels, and then there's no need for the plane to wait around ... you
could call it a "delivery service" or "postal service"! ;-)
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