The Ministry of Public Health and True Corporation Plc. (SET: TRUE) has partnered with key allies, including the CAAT, the NBTC, and AEROTHAI, to launch a “Medical Drone” project honoring His Majesty the King. The collaboration also marks the launch of SkyBridge, an autonomous air logistics management platform designed for public health services.
By overcoming geographical barriers, the platform helps reduce both travel distance and delivery time for medicines and medical supplies across mountainous areas, particularly during critical situations. The initiative is set to expand to ten additional remote locations, including Debaratana Vejjanukula Hospital Commemorating Her Royal Highness Princess Maha Chakri Sirinthorn’s 60th Birthday Anniversary in Mae Chaem District, Chiang Mai, with the goal of integrating into Thailand’s healthcare service system for both routine operations and emergency or disaster response.
Today, 16 July 2026, at Phaya Pha Nong Stadium in Pua District, Nan Province, Mr. Narin Kalayanamit, an adviser to the public health minister was delegated by Mr. Pattana Promphat, Minister of Public Health, presided over the launch of the “Medical Unmanned Aircraft (Drone) Operations Project” in honor of His Majesty the King on the auspicious occasion of His Majesty’s birthday on 28 July 2026. In collaboration with the Ministry of Public Health, CAAT and True Corporation Plc. represented by Mr. Ekaraj Panjavinin, Head of Research and Innovation and Mr. Chakkrit Urairat, Chief Regulatory and Government Relations Officer. The event was attended by Nathaya Thaweewong, Vice Governor of Nan, Piya Siriluk, Inspector General of the Ministry of Public Health, Health Region 1, and executives from CAAT, NBTC and associated partners.
This project marks Thailand’s first success in deploying medical drone technology with a longer flight range than in the past, and “True SkyBridge”, the first and only Autonomous Air Logistics Platform fully integrated into public health workflows. Designed and developed by the Research and Innovation Center of True Corporation, the platform supports multi-brand drones and features full-function AI-driven flight data and safety systems over True’s intelligent network. The platform is applied to support Thailand’s medical and public health services, which will tangibly elevate the national public health logistics infrastructure.
The live drone flights officially kicked off for the first time in Nan Province under the “Pua Model”, a region characterized by mountainous terrain, winding roads along mountainsides and cliffs, and scattered communities. During certain times of the year, there is a risk of heavy rainfall, landslides, or flash floods that can disrupt ground transportation routes. This reflects the capability of the True SkyBridge platform, which is purpose-engineered to withstand all challenges of Thailand’s specific terrain and climate. It addresses a critical requirement of the Thai public health system by overcoming geographical constraints, whether in remote areas, steep mountains, or emergency situations where land transportation networks are disrupted. The ultimate goal is to ensure that “distance and time” are no longer barriers to patient care, allowing patients in every area to receive timely care, especially during crises.
The heart of this “Medical Drone” operation is the integration of collaboration to lay the foundation for the country’s new model of healthcare logistics infrastructure that is intelligent, safe, precise, fully auditable, and capable of expanding into a national network in the future. This is powered by “True SkyBridge”, a prototype platform developed by the True Innovation Center to connect hospitals, medical service units, public health personnel, and the public through an autonomous air logistics network. This ensures quality medical services with greater speed, timeliness, safety, and inclusivity for the public, aligning with True Corporation’s commitment to leveraging the potential of intelligent network and digital technologies to develop innovations, elevate people’s quality of life, and create sustainable value for society and the country.
Mr. Narin Kalayanamit, an adviser to the public health minister, said, “MOPH is committed to a policy of developing the healthcare service system in accordance with the Royal Initiative, aiming to ensure that all citizens have thorough, equitable, and quality access to healthcare services, particularly people in frontier, remote, and underserved areas facing medical access restrictions. This also includes promoting the deployment of technology and innovation to enhance the efficiency of the healthcare service system. On the auspicious occasion of His Majesty the King’s Birthday Anniversary on July 28, 2026, this project was organized to honor His Majesty by operating medical drone in high mountainous and forested areas where travel is limited and often affected by natural disasters such as flash floods or mudslides, which disrupt patient transfers and the transport of medicines, medical supplies, or essential medical items highly difficult. In the past, flight trials were successfully conducted in coastal areas, which demonstrated a significant reduction in both time and constraints of maritime transportation. Therefore, medical drones serve as another approach to elevate public access to healthcare services, while effectively enhancing readiness in handling emergency and disaster situations”.
“We would like to extend our sincere gratitude to True Corporation Plc. for its support in drone technology, platforms and communication systems, knowledge transfer, and technical assistance, as well as to all relevant agencies, including the NBTC, CAAT, AEROTHAI, and local authorities. This collaboration has enabled the integration of communication technology into the public healthcare system, thereby improving the efficiency of public service delivery. Moving forward, the model will be expanded to ten additional remote areas, including Debaratana Vejjanukula Hospital Commemorating Her Royal Highness Princess Maha Chakri Sirinthorn’s 60th Birthday Anniversary in Mae Chaem District, Chiang Mai and integrated into the healthcare service system to further enhance service efficiency during both routine operations and emergency or disaster situations”. Mr. Narin said.
Mr. Ekaraj Panjavinin, Head of Research and Innovation at True Corporation Plc., said, “Under this collaboration, True has launched True SkyBridge, an Autonomous Air Logistics Platform designed and developed by True Corporation’s Research and Innovation Center to support Thailand’s medical and public health services. The platform represents a significant step towards strengthening the country’s national healthcare logistics infrastructure. True SkyBridge provides end-to-end management of medical transport missions, covering route planning, medical payload quality monitoring, real-time flight tracking, fleet management and control, drone readiness and safety systems, as well as automated documentation that records the time and coordinates throughout each flight. Powered by True’s intelligent network, the platform enables the fast and seamless delivery of medicines, medical supplies, and medical samples on every mission. It is also designed to provide high levels of safety and full traceability, with the potential to scale into a nationwide network in the future.
Today, two demonstration routes were operated under the ‘Pua Model’. The first, the ‘NCD Continuity Model’, delivered medicines for patients with non-communicable diseases (NCDs) from Phaya Pha Nong Stadium to Ban Rong Ngae Community Square, before returning with medical samples. The flight covered a round-trip distance of four kilometres and took approximately 3.5 minutes, 50% faster than transportation by road, which takes around 7 minutes. The second route, the ‘Disaster Response Model’, demonstrated the delivery of medicines to a remote area where land transport routes had been cut off. The drone travelled across steep mountains, cliffs, and dense forests from Phaya Pha Nong Stadium to the basketball court at Ban Nam Pua School, before returning with medical samples. The round-trip distance was 46 kilometres and took approximately 35 minutes, which was 70% faster than transportation by road that usually takes more than 2 hours.”
