Dubai Wants Drone Mailmen Within A Year

REUTERS/Ahmed JadallahAn unmanned aerial drone is displayed during Virtual Future Exhibition, in Dubai February 9, 2014.

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) aims to rollout a drone delivery system for mailing government documents within a year, Sky News reports.

Dubai plans to use miniature unmanned aircraft that would use fingerprint and retina identification to delivery parcels such as identity cards, driving licenses, and other permits in the country.

"The UAE will try to deliver its government services through drones," cabinet affairs minister Mohammed al Gergawi told Sky News. "This is the first project of its kind in the world."

The obstacles to such a system include how the drones would be operated (human or automatic control), the region's country's high summer temperatures and aggressive sand storms, and how to make urban deliveries in high density areas such as Dubai.