Resonia and Amber Wings Push Heavy Lift Drone Tech Forward

Resonia, a major player in India’s power transmission sector, has formed a joint venture with Amber Wings, the drone manufacturing arm of Ubifly Technologies, and the agreement was announced during the Dubai Airshow 2025, as The Stat Times reports.

The two companies want to bring next generation heavy lift drones into large transmission projects across India, aiming to replace slow manual transport with fast autonomous aerial logistics, a shift that could dramatically change how materials move across remote terrain.

The partnership builds on a successful pilot in the Khavda IV C Transmission Project, where Amber Wings used its M50 aircraft to carry 110 lb (50 kg) per flight, moving as much as four tonnes of components each day across difficult ground where trucks simply could not operate efficiently.

These early missions showed more than raw lift power, they proved that heavy lift drones can reduce worker exposure to dangerous terrain, limit delays caused by poor road access, and keep construction on track even when weather or geography work against traditional logistics.

For a sector where last mile delivery has long been the most stubborn bottleneck, the results pointed to a future where drones become a core part of every major infrastructure build.

Next generation drones with bigger payloads and smarter systems

With the MoU now in place, the companies are preparing a roadmap for new aircraft capable of carrying two hundred kilograms per flight, a major step up that would place India among the leaders in industrial drone lift capacity.

The planned systems will include cooperative swarm features, allowing multiple aircraft to work together, along with improved battery technology that should extend flight time and throughput. The JV is also exploring autonomous tower erection support, which could allow drones to assist with lifting hardware or tools directly at tower sites, reducing manual effort and speeding up the most complex stages of transmission infrastructure assembly.

India’s power EPC market, valued at more than twenty two billion dollars and expected to grow to thirty nine billion by 2033, is under pressure to deliver safer and faster results as the national grid expands into harsher and more remote regions.

Resonia’s leadership believes drone logistics will unlock new levels of performance, with CEO Arun Sharma calling the partnership a pivotal moment for the sector. He said the early results at Khavda demonstrate how aerial systems can reshape efficiency, safety and precision on some of the country’s most challenging projects.

Prof Satya Chakravarthy, founder of Ubifly Technologies and CTO of Amber Wings, noted that the collaboration highlights India’s readiness to adopt advanced aerial systems for industrial use, and he expects the combined effort to speed up development and bring real world impact in a relatively short time.

Building a workforce that can operate the new ecosystem

Alongside the technical push, the partnership places strong emphasis on training, since both companies understand that automation only works if the people on the ground can run the new systems.

One of the goals of the JV is to create a certified operator program for EPC workers, opening the door for tower crews and material handlers to transition into drone operations without being left behind in the shift to automation. By bringing drone operation skills directly to the workforce, the companies see an opportunity to build a more resilient and future ready labor ecosystem that grows alongside the expanding grid.

If the partnership succeeds in scaling a drone first logistics model, India’s transmission sector could move from traditional ground based transport to a hybrid system where drones handle difficult terrain, fast turnaround tasks and the majority of material lift needs.

The companies believe this approach will raise safety, increase agility, and reduce dependence on slow and inconsistent on site transport, especially in remote zones where infrastructure is limited.

DroneXL’s Take

Heavy lift drones are moving from experimental to practical use, and this partnership shows how quickly the technology is maturing. A four tonne daily lift rate using fifty kilogram drones is already impressive, but the jump to two hundred kilograms and coordinated swarm operations could change the entire workflow of major utility projects.

If India successfully builds a drone driven logistics ecosystem for power transmission, the model will almost certainly spread to construction, mining and renewable energy sites around the world.

Photo credit: Amberwings.co