BLACKSBURG, Va., Sept. 16 (UPI) — Google and Chipotle have teamed up with researchers at Virginia Tech to begin testing the possibility of delivering burritos by drone.
According to WDBJ7, the initial test deliveries are limited to a few hundred participants on an undisclosed location on Virginia Tech property.
“I hope it starts here and spreads everywhere. I think it could be a really good idea,” a student said.
The few select participants are able to order their food from a kiosk, at which point it is prepared in an on-site Chipotle food truck before being flown to its destination by a drone.
The experiments were a joint effort between Mid-Atlantic Aviation Partnership at Virginia Tech and Google’s Project Wing.
According to The Roanoke Times, Google said the drones would be flown autonomously although pilots would be on standby in case of any incident.
Data from the flights will also be collected and supplied to the Federal Aviation Administration, who plan to use the technology to deliver medicine, batteries and other items to rural or disaster-stricken areas.
