Drone Pizza Delivery Is Coming to NZ!

Aerial pizza delivery may sound futuristic but Domino's has been given the green light to test New Zealand pizza delivery via drones.

The fast food chain has partnered with drone business Flirtey to launch the first commercial drone delivery service in the world, starting later this year.

Domino's Group chief executive and managing director, Don Meij said the company had been investigating innovative and new delivery methods as business had grown.

This included looking at robotic delivery, which the government is still considering.

Details around where the trial would be held have been kept under wraps - however Domino's said it would use drone delivery alongside its usual delivery methods - and only where it would be faster than the use of a car or scooter.

It will offer drone delivery specials at the launch of the trial with plans to extend the dimensions, weight and distance of the deliveries throughout the trial, based on results and customer feedback.

The company will not offer the full range of its products for drone delivery - and only those customers within a certain distance from a store will be served from the air.

"With the increased number of deliveries we make each year, we were faced with the challenge of ensuring our delivery times continue to decrease and that we strive to offer our customers new and progressive ways of ordering from us," Meij said.

"Research into different delivery methods led us to Flirtey. Their success within the airborne delivery space has been impressive and it's something we have wanted to offer our customers," he said.

According to Meij, the company had been investigating delivery options for a while, saying that it didn't make sense to have a two tonne machine delivering a two kilogram order.

He said the use of drones offered a faster and safer option as well as removing barriers such as traffic and distance, meaning they could deliver further afield and faster in urban areas.

"Domino's is all about providing customers with choice and making customer's lives easier," Meij said. "Adding innovation such as drone deliveries means customers can experience cutting-edge technology and the convenience of having their Supreme pizza delivered via air to their door. This is the future."

If it is successful the company plans to extend the delivery method to six other markets - Australia, Belgium, France, The Netherlands, Japan and Germany.

Read a Domino's supplied Frequently Asked Questions document on the drone delivery trial here:

-NZ Herald