[2017]
"However, one notable difference is the altitude at which the blimps would fly. While Amazon’s floating-warehouse/drone-airport combo would park itself way above the clouds at 45,000 feet (about 13,700 meters), Walmart’s would hang in the air much, much lower at between 500 and 1,000 feet (about 150 to 300 meters). Considering issues of drone battery power, Walmart’s idea seems more sensible, although the blimp’s stability would be at the mercy of weather conditions, whereas Amazon’s should be well clear of weather systems.
Walmart, which suggested two years after Amazon that it too was thinking about developing a drone delivery platform, says in its patent: “There are numerous ways to distribute and deliver products. Getting the product to a delivery location, however, can cause undesirable delays, can add cost and reduce revenue.” That’s where its giant package-filled floating warehouse comes in.
The blimp would stop by one of Walmart’s ground-based locations to load up with deliveries and drones before lifting off again, heading for an optimum location from which its drones can make numerous deliveries, buzzing between customer addresses and the blimp on multiple runs. Once the blimp is empty of packages, it would return to base to load up some more while the drones’ batteries recharge."
https://www.digitaltrends.com/cool-tech/walmart-floating-warehouse-drone-delivery/
"However, one notable difference is the altitude at which the blimps would fly. While Amazon’s floating-warehouse/drone-airport combo would park itself way above the clouds at 45,000 feet (about 13,700 meters), Walmart’s would hang in the air much, much lower at between 500 and 1,000 feet (about 150 to 300 meters). Considering issues of drone battery power, Walmart’s idea seems more sensible, although the blimp’s stability would be at the mercy of weather conditions, whereas Amazon’s should be well clear of weather systems.
Walmart, which suggested two years after Amazon that it too was thinking about developing a drone delivery platform, says in its patent: “There are numerous ways to distribute and deliver products. Getting the product to a delivery location, however, can cause undesirable delays, can add cost and reduce revenue.” That’s where its giant package-filled floating warehouse comes in.
The blimp would stop by one of Walmart’s ground-based locations to load up with deliveries and drones before lifting off again, heading for an optimum location from which its drones can make numerous deliveries, buzzing between customer addresses and the blimp on multiple runs. Once the blimp is empty of packages, it would return to base to load up some more while the drones’ batteries recharge."
https://www.digitaltrends.com/cool-tech/walmart-floating-warehouse-drone-delivery/