A Drone-Based Emergency Medical Supply Network for Rapid Blood Delivery in Rural Thailand: A Conceptual Design

Timely access to blood and critical medical supplies is essential for emergency healthcare, particularly in rural areas of Thailand where transportation delays can critically impact patient survival. The current system relies on manual coordination and road-based logistics, resulting in delivery times of 1-4 hours. This paper presents ASTRO (Automated Supply and Transport for Rural Operations), a drone-based emergency medical supply network designed to improve the speed and reliability of blood delivery in rural Thailand. It integrates a smart digital platform for real-time request processing with autonomous VTOL drone delivery, transporting temperature-controlled products from regional blood centers co-located with related facilities directly to hospitals within a 50-80 km radius. By eliminating manual coordination and reducing dependency on ground transport, the system targets delivery times of 15-30 minutes. This research demonstrates how integrating advanced UAV logistics into existing Thai healthcare infrastructure can address critical bottlenecks and significantly improve patient outcomes.