Pizza delivery by drone

The world's first pizza drone delivery was claimed Wednesday by the New Zealand division of the Domino's fast food chain as it looked to grab a slice of a potentially hot future market.

Domino's said it used an unmanned aerial vehicle to deliver two pizzas to a couple in Whangaparaoa, just north of Auckland.

The firm's boss, Don Meij, said drones were set to become an essential part of pizza deliveries.

"They can avoid traffic congestion and traffic lights and safely reduce the delivery time and distance by traveling directly to customers' homes," he said. "This is the future. Today's successful delivery was an important proof of this concept."

High-flying ambitions

The two pizzas in question were delivered within just three minutes of flying time, Stuff.co.nz reported online. That's about the time "it can take our drivers on busy days to get out of the car park, so [delivery by drone] will be a game changer," said Domino's General Manager Scott Bush.

"We hope to have all orders being delivered by drone to everyone within the next couple of years," he added.

Domino's said it was also examining using drones in Australia, Japan, Belgium, France, the Netherlands and Germany.

In March, the company unveiled a robot cart being trialed in New Zealand and billed as the world's first driverless pizza delivery vehicle.

hg/sgb (AFP, stuff.co.nz)