• DroneUp, a drone solutions provider, has acquired AirMap, a California-based airspace management software provider for drones, for an undisclosed sum.

• The acquisition would complement DroneUp’s offering, acting as an unmanned aircraft system traffic management (UTM) solution for its pilot network, drone fleet, and ground infrastructure.

• DroneUp plans to invest in and expand AirMap’s platform further while continuing to offer AirMap’s services to third parties.

• AirMap offers UTM software for unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), which connects authorities to the drone ecosystem to exchange flight information. Its resources are developed in collaboration with U‑Space in Europe and US authorities, including the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) as well as NASA, and provides services to around 100,000 global daily flights—reportedly one of the three international platforms for UTM.

<ul><li> Analyst QuickTake: Even though acquisitions are not common in the last mile delivery automation space, DroneUp has been pursuing an inorganic growth strategy previously as well. This is well depicted by its recent complementary acquisitions including AeroVista Innovations (April 2020) and Web Teks (March 2021). </ul>