No-one was hurt, but divers did not manage to recover the drone on Friday and the cause of the accident was not known. The drone was carrying a non-vital blood sample between a clinic and a laboratory on the other side of the lake.
Swiss Post said it was suspending its drone transport flights for Lugano and Zurich university hospital until the cause was found. It said “postal drones” have so far carried out more than 3,000 flights without accident in Lugano, Zurich and Berne.
Two hospitals in Lugano were the first to start using drones in 2017 to exchange lab samples. They say it saves them a lot of time, which can be vital in a case where, for example, a patient under anaesthetic needs a blood sample analysed quickly.
The World Economic Forum (WEF) meanwhile published a guideExternal link on Friday to help governments regulate drone deliveries, saying Switzerland could become a model for other countries in this field.
Thanks to the WEF guide, governments “will not have to start from scratch to develop their regulations on drones,” says its author Harrison Wolf, who led the project at the WEF Centre for the Fourth Industrial RevolutionExternal link. The “toolbox” draws on successful pilot projects in Switzerland, Rwanda and Malawi.
In a statement on Friday the director of the Swiss Federal Office of Civil AviationExternal link, Christian Hegner, said he was “very proud” of Switzerland’s contribution to this programme. “We have learned a lot in the last few years,” he said. “Sharing our expertise and learning from other countries will help speed up and extend drone security around the world.”
Popular Stories
More
Foreign Affairs
In Switzerland four out of ten people have a migrant background – who are they?
Train vs plane: would you take a direct train between London and Geneva?
Eurostar is planning to run direct trains from Britain to Germany and Switzerland from the early 2030s. Would you favour the train over the plane? If not, why not?
Premiere for Swiss Air Force on French National Day
This content was published on
On July 14, the Swiss Air Force will take part in the traditional air parade in Paris to mark the French bank holidays with an F/A-18 fighter jet. This is a first for Switzerland.
Swiss launch competition for memorial to Nazi victims
This content was published on
The victims of Nazi Germany are to be commemorated on the Casinoterrasse in Bern. A competition will be held to determine what the site will look like.
This content was published on
The cantonal police of Graubünden in eastern Switzerland have arrested and convicted five cocaine dealers in Chur within a week.
This content was published on
The Swiss business umbrella organisation Economiesuisse and the employers' association broadly support the package of agreements negotiated with the European Union.
Top Swiss politician experiences drone attack in Ukraine
This content was published on
Maja Riniker, president of the Swiss House of Representatives, said she had to spend two hours in a bunker during her trip to Ukraine because of Russian drone attacks.
This content was published on
A rockfall caused an interruption of several hours on the Albula line of the Rhaetian Railway between Thusis and Tiefencastel on Thursday.
This content was published on
A 600kg bull that escaped in the Montalchez region of canton Neuchâtel has been found in a pen surrounded by several cows.
Bern chatbot wins UN artificial intelligence award
This content was published on
The Bern-based chatbot "Sophia" has won the United Nations' "AI for Good Impact Award 2025". The chatbot is designed to help victims of domestic violence.
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.
Read more
More
Geneva airport ‘not immune’ to drone interference
This content was published on
“We could find ourselves in the same situation as Gatwick and have to close the airspace,” said Geneva Airport's communications director.
This content was published on
Drones will be used this month to start delivering laboratory samples between two hospitals in canton Ticino as part of tests carried out by Swiss Post.
You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here . Please join us!
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.