Walmart’s Drone Delivery Service Expands Wings in Dallas

Walmart is expanding sky-high deliveries in Dallas by teaming with Wing, an on-demand drone delivery provider powered by Google’s parent company, Alphabet. 

The aerial service is set to take flight “in the coming weeks” first from a Walmart Supercenter in Frisco, Texas, and a second location before the end of the year. Both stores will cover more 60,000 homes—according to the company.

Delivery will be available for homes located six miles from the supporting stores. Customers can download the Wing app and enter their address to determine if their home is within delivery range. 

The drones can fly up to 65 mph, and Wing says items will be delivered in under 30 minutes. They use retractable tethers to “gently deliver even delicate items” such as eggs. Customers can order a range of products from groceries, household essentials and over-the-counter medicines. 

In addition, Wing technology allows operators to oversee the system remotely, meaning pilots do not have to be stationed at stores. 

“The aircraft essentially fly themselves, so each operator is approved to safely oversee many drones at the same time,” Wing wrote in a statement.

Drone usage is nothing new for the retail giant, which began testing deliveries nearly two years ago. Aside from Wing, Walmart has partnered with DroneUp, Zipline and Flytrex. Currently, the retailer offers drone delivery in 36 stores across seven states.

“Working with Wing directly aligns with our passion for finding innovating and eco-friendly last-mile delivery solutions to get customers the items they want, when they want them,” Walmart wrote in a statement. 

For Wing, the partnership with Walmart is a major move coming on the heels of unveiling a new logistics system that enables its drones to deliver items back-to-back without needing to report to an originating base. Last year, the company began drone delivery service in Dallas with Walgreens and kicked off a pilot program with DoorDash, testing a few deliveries in Australia.