Irish pubs use drones to deliver Guinness and lift spirits

In Ireland people have started to use drones to deliver Guinness to local customers and by doing so lift their spirits in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic and lockdown.

Irish pubs use drones to deliver Guinness and lift spirits

Avril McKeever, owner of McKeever's Bar & Lounge, A 152-year-old Irish pub that serves a rural community 30 miles north of Dublin has started to use drones to deliver Guinness and other beers.

The drone pilot making the deliveries is McKeever's nephew-in-law, Paul Clarke. He cross-crosses his drone around the neighborhood with bottles of beer hanging underneath by a string, according to The Guardian.

“We had a bottle of wine and a bag of Tayto crisps ready to go last night but it didn't takeoff because of the wind,” McKeever said last week.

The solution to deliver beer by drone may seem like a cute idea, but the underlying problem is far more serious. Since the start of the Coronavirus outbreak, Ireland's 7,000 pubs are literally fighting for survival. Many of them were the first businesses to close, leaving 50,000 people without jobs. Under the current plans of the Irish government, the pubs may be able to reopen on August 10th.

The pubs are doing anything that is within their reach to survive, including delivering Guinness by drone. It is a way for McKeever to lift spirits and keep the connection between the pub and the community alive. Apart from using drones, bars are also delivering beer by vans.

The drone shown in the photo seems to be a DJI Phantom 4 with the gimbal clasp still installed. The line carrying the beers seems to be attached to the clasp, which might put strain on the gimbal itself. I'm not sure this is best way of carrying a payload with a Phantom. The drone's leg on the far right side for the viewer, seems to be repaired with tape, which may be an indication that this way of delivering beer is not yet completely foolproof.

What do you think about delivering Guinness by drone? Do you think that drone regulations should be eased by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) during the coronavirus pandemic, so that these unmanned aircraft can be used in new and innovative ways. Let us know what you think in the comment below. Where do you see opportunities for drones to be used during these time?