A drone carrying items leaves the cdf Haikou international duty-free shopping complex in Hainan Province, Jan. 24, 2025. (Photo provided to China News Service)
(ECNS) -- South China's Haikou Customs announced on Sunday that the cdf Haikou international duty-free shopping complex in Hainan Province successfully carried out China's first regular customs-supervised low-altitude drone delivery of duty-free goods for island departures.
In this operation, three duty-free items worth 10,549.5 yuan ($1452.42) were delivered over a distance of 1,133.5 meters in just one minute and 24 seconds from cdf Haikou to the pickup point at Haikou south port.
Wang Yang, head of the Duty-Free Goods Supervision Division at Haikou Customs, explained that in the past, due to logistical limitations, travelers who purchased duty-free items online had to wait six hours before picking them up at Haikou south port.
With the low-altitude drone delivery system, the pickup time now has been reduced to less than three hours. This improves transportation efficiency and reduces costs for businesses.
The customs authorities stated that this innovative initiative marks the deep integration of the low-altitude economy with duty-free goods delivery logistics.
A representative noted that during the Spring Festival travel rush, drone delivery will significantly enhance logistics efficiency and improve consumer satisfaction.