built in Ireland and Wales , on food delivery . But when the pandemic hit , the team changed course and collaborated with Ireland ’ s
Health Service Executive to deliver medications and other essential supplies to people in the small rural town of
Moneygall . People could simply have a video chat with their doctors and receive their prescriptions by one of Manna ’ s drones .
The company is currently conducting 3,000 drone flights a week , but Healy is expanding into other areas of Europe and he aims for Manna Drone Delivery drones to touch down in the United States sometime in 2021 or early 2022 .
ARCHER FIRST RESPONSE SYSTEMS
Delivering lifesaving supplies when every minute counts
When self-proclaimed drone hobbyist Gordon Folkes , founder of
Archer First Response Systems , a 911-integrated drone startup , was a sophomore at Florida State University , he and several friends connected a drone wirelessly to his computer so they could control it remotely .
“ It made me realize we could do anything with these [ drones ], anywhere ,” explains Folkes . Specifically , he believed that drones ’ agility and customizability could make them ideal delivery vehicles in medical emergencies like cardiac arrest .
Folkes had learned that one of the greatest obstacles in treating cardiac arrest was getting an automated external defibrillator ( AED ) to a patient quickly to prevent brain damage or death . So he focused on developing a drone system to reach victims in
THIS PAGE : PHOTOGRAPH BY LOT AMORÓS . OPPOSITE PAGE ( FROM TOP ): PHOTOGRAPHS BY ARCHER UAS ; COURTESY OF MANNA
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