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SkyDrive to Evaluate Potential Routes for eVTOL Medical Logistics in India in Partnership with Air India and Suzuki

Business Wire

Selecting and evaluating initial operational routes connecting pharmaceutical networks, airports and hospitals

TOYOTA, Japan, August 25, 2026--SkyDrive Inc. ("SkyDrive"), a leading Japanese developer, manufacturer, and seller of compact eVTOL aircraft (*1), today announced that it will move forward with evaluating initial operational routes for the introduction of eVTOL medical logistics services in India, in partnership with Air India and Suzuki. This is part of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) that the three organizations signed in July 2026 to jointly study the feasibility of such operations.(*2)

Background and Purpose

In India, rapid economic growth in recent years has led to severe traffic congestion in major urban areas, making the timely transport of urgent medical supplies a significant social and economic challenge.

Against this backdrop, SkyDrive, Air India and Suzuki aim to introduce medical logistics services utilizing eVTOLs, and through this program, will identify and evaluate the highest-priority, high-impact operational routes across India.

The routes listed below represent an initial set of locations and routes identified for further evaluation. Any future operations arising from the joint study would be undertaken in close coordination with the relevant government and regulatory authorities and subject to all necessary approvals.

Key Use Cases and Operational Routes

This program targets the following use cases with particularly high urgency and social need in India, evaluating and validating the feasibility and impact of concrete operational routes:

1. Emergency Transport of Radioactive Isotopes

  • Background: Cancer diagnostic and therapeutic pharmaceuticals utilizing radioactive isotopes have an extremely short half-life, requiring immediate delivery to hospitals after production.

  • Evaluated Route: Transport from a manufacturing plant in Mumbai to nearby major general hospitals.

  • Expected Impact & Evaluation: Evaluate how reliable air logistics can bypass road traffic, prevent medication degradation and expedite patient care.

2. Emergency Medical & Organ Transport

  • Background: Time is the highest priority for transplant surgeries and emergency medical care, but chronic traffic congestion in major metropolitan areas such as the Delhi National Capital Region (NCR) poses a major obstacle.

  • Evaluated Route: Transport between major hospitals in the Delhi NCR.

  • Expected Impact & Evaluation: Assess the safety and feasibility of using eVTOLs to cut inter-hospital transport times from 30 to 90 minutes by ambulance to just 10 to 15 minutes.

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