Ship crews on China's Yangtze River can now order food delivered by drones

Crew members working on vessels along China's Yangtze River can now order food and daily supplies without leaving their ships, thanks to a drone delivery service launched in August.

"In the past, we had to wait for small supply boats at anchorages or restock at ports. Now we can order food while staying on the ship. It's incredibly convenient," said Bai Xiaojing, a sailor with more than a decade of experience.

A drone flies toward a ship sailing on the Yangtze River. (People's Daily Online/Ma Xiaobo)

Using a WeChat mini program, Bai ordered food on the Yangtze River for the first time in September, and she received the food delivered directly to her ship by a drone.

Surprised by the convenience, Bai posted a video of the experience on a short-video sharing platform, where it quickly garnered more than 32,000 likes.

In the comments, many viewers praised the service as an example of how technology is reshaping daily life and asked practical questions about location tracking and delivery addresses, while other ship crews said they were also trying to order food on the river themselves.

A wide range of items, including hamburgers, milk tea, fresh produce, grains, cooking oil, snacks and beverages, are available at prices comparable to standard e-commerce platforms, according to Bai.

"Orders must be placed at least one hour in advance, with delivery addresses linked to designated service stations," Bai said. "Using vessel identification numbers and registered phone numbers, the service platform can accurately locate a ship's position before dispatching drones for precise delivery."

The drone automatically released the package upon arrival, and the process was very stable, Bai recalled, noting that even drinks such as milk tea arrived without spilling.

In August, Changjiang Hui, a comprehensive e-commerce platform dedicated to serving ship crews, launched the drone delivery service to address the long-standing "last mile" logistics challenge for river vessels.

The service marked the first operational low-altitude application combining water and land transportation in Nanjing, the capital of east China's Jiangsu Province.

Leveraging Nanjing's status as one of China's first pilot zones for civilian unmanned aviation, municipal transportation authorities have built a comprehensive low-altitude service system and established a low-altitude flight service platform, according to Chen Jing, an official with Nanjing's transportation bureau.

The transportation authorities have prioritized applications that link waterways and shore-based infrastructure, laying the groundwork for drone services to be deployed in everyday scenarios, Chen said.

"The service system integrates intelligent dispatching, route planning, 5G communication and visual recognition technologies, and is now in routine operation," said Zhai Haifeng, general manager of Jiangsu Changjiang Hui Technology Co., the platform's operator.

From January to August this year, drones operating under the system completed 27,000 flights, covering roughly 143,000 kilometers and delivering 264 tonnes of supplies to more than 8,700 vessels, according to Zhai.

Although the service is currently limited to areas with established infrastructure, Zhai said the goal is to extend coverage along the entire 2,800-kilometer main channel of the Yangtze River, making onboard delivery just a few taps away, regardless of a ship's location.