Sberbank Drones May Soon Carry Up to $8Mln in Cash to Remote Areas of Russia

© Photo : radar-mms press serviceHelicopter drone. file photo.
Helicopter drone. file photo. - Sputnik International
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The Russian state bank plans to start flight trials for their new drone technology later this year.

Speaking to Sputnik on the sidelines of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF) on Thursday, Sberbank executive board deputy chairman Stanislav Kuznetsov revealed that the bank's robotics lab is working on a series of unmanned aerial vehicles to be used for deliveries to remote areas.

"At least five or even six kinds of drones [are] being researched, created, built and used in models," the official said.

Preparations for 2018 SPIEF in St. Petersburg - Sputnik International
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St. Petersburg International Economic Forum SPIEF
Sberbank plans to show off one of the UAVs, a helicopter-style drone, at SPIEF. The small drone, with a diameter of no more than 3 meters, is currently able to carry about 70 kg of cargo, with its capacity expected to be expanded to 100 kg in the future.

According to Kuznetsov, its drone technology will enjoy strong demand in hard-to-reach areas of Russia, which require the delivery of documents, small items or cash. Fitted with a special container mounted on its undercarriage, the drone's valuable cargo will be protected by special dye packs, which render the cash useless if an attempt is made to steal it.

With a single 5,000 ruble note ($81.50) weighing about 1.02 grams, a 100 kg container would be able to accommodate about 98,000 notes, or 490 million rubles ($7.9 million) in cash.

Flight tests of the helicopter drone are expected to start in November or December of this year, with preliminary work set to wrap up by September or October.

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