The hum of rapidly spinning rotors filled the air on May 19th as a drone, carrying express mail, lifted off from a postal station in Linshan Township, Kaihua County. It ascended steadily before following a pre-set flight path towards villages like Shuncun and Xishan. This marked the official launch of Kaihua's first mountainous drone logistics route, ushering in an era of "aerial express delivery" for local residents.
Located in the mountainous western region of Zhejiang Province, Kaihua has long faced challenges with last-mile delivery due to scattered villages, low parcel volumes, and high distribution costs. Private courier companies found it difficult to service these remote areas, often forcing villagers to travel to town centers to collect packages. To overcome this "final kilometer" hurdle, Kaihua County, with Linshan Township as a pilot site, is leveraging low-altitude economy initiatives to empower rural revitalization, using drone technology to break geographical constraints. A rugged mountain road trip that previously took 40 minutes from the township government to Linyuan Village can now be completed in a mere 18 minutes via a direct drone flight. This not only drastically cuts delivery times but also effectively reduces overall operational costs for businesses.
"Before, I had to travel a long way to get a package. Now, the drone delivers it right to my doorstep. It's so much more convenient," said Zhan Yongfu, a resident of Shuncun Village. What excites him even more is the "on-demand service" model enabled by the drone logistics network. This system not only delivers packages to villages but also facilitates the outbound shipment of local agricultural products and acts as a purchasing agent for daily necessities. Specialty produce from Kaihua, such as high-mountain tea and seasonal fruits and vegetables, can now "fly" directly out of the fields and over the mountains. This allows深山土特产 (deep mountain local specialties) to keep pace with "cloud speed," effectively broadening villagers' income channels.
Currently, this route primarily handles the distribution of postal express items and newspapers, with a standardized operational process: couriers load the goods, drone company staff remotely control the takeoff, and destination couriers handle the final delivery. The route operator stated that they plan to gradually integrate major courier brands like "San Tong Yi Da" (ZTO Express, STO Express, YTO Express, Yunda Express) in the later stages, making the online shopping experience even smoother for villagers.
As a pilot county for the low-altitude economy in the province, Kaihua is actively exploring application scenarios with distinct regional characteristics, tailored to its mountainous reality. Beyond logistics, Kaihua's exploration of the low-altitude economy is blossoming in multiple areas. The county has already established over ten aerial routes covering logistics, medical services, emergency response, and more. Since October of last year, Kaihua made a breakthrough in blood transport, using drones to cut the transport time for test specimens by nearly half, having cumulatively transferred over 170,000 specimens. Furthermore, in areas like Suzhuang Town, drones are also tasked with transporting agricultural products like tea-oil tree seeds via sling loads. This reduces a half-hour manual carrying task to just a few minutes, greatly alleviating labor shortages in mountainous regions.
"The low-altitude economy must not only fly steadily but also deliver tangible benefits to the people," said Xiang Yueqi, a staff member at the Low-altitude Management Service Center of the Kaihua County Transportation Bureau. The next step involves gradually promoting the "low-altitude + logistics" model in suitable areas, accelerating the development of a comprehensive system with diverse application scenarios, ultimately allowing drones to carry mountain villagers toward common prosperity.
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