American retailing conglomerate Walmart and its drone logistics sidekick Wing did promise to bring drone-based delivery in more US metros in the coming months.
Well; one of them has just gone live.
“Charlotte residents (that’s Charlotte, North Carolina), your next delivery may be taking flight,” said Wing in a Facebook post yesterday.
“Skip the crowded parking lots and busy commuter corridors. Your Walmart groceries, home essentials, and over-the-counter medicine are officially flying straight to your yard in as fast as 30 minutes!
“We are now serving neighborhoods surrounding seven local Walmart Supercenters (including Charlotte, Gastonia, Concord, Kannapolis, Lincolnton, Shelby, and Kings Mountain), with more on the way. No traffic. No parking. No tipping.”
With customers within a range of about 9.7 kilometres set to benefit, there are ten communities within the sphere of influence of the new aerial delivery route, with Huntersville, Indian Trail and Matthews residents also eligible for drone deliveries.
Ther are several of the seven stores that have been offering drones as a delivery option for a longer time though, with Kings Mountain having started in December 2025, while Shelby in February, and Kannapolis started offering the service in June.
But the thing about the lates launch is that the disparate operations have now been combined into a single Charlotte metro service, with two more Charlotte stores coming online this week.
Walmart and Wing even made live demonstrations on Tuesday at the Supercenter near Monroe Road in east Charlotte, as reported by the local Business North Carolina.
At the Monroe Road Supercenter, Wing has fenced off a corner of the parking lot as a nest with departure spots for about a dozen drones.
The Charlotte-area stores are part of 60 Walmart stores nationwide that now offer drone deliveries, with the two partners working towards a target of more than 270 by the end of 2027.
Customers in range will see a drone option appear when they shop on the Walmart app, on the website or on the Wing app.
Charlotte had Wing drones before Walmart arrived: DoorDash and Wing began flying restaurant orders near The Arboretum Shopping Center in May 2025.
Wing’s drones weigh five kilogrammes and never land at the customer’s home. They hover about seven metres up and lower the order on a tether. Orders cap at about 2.1 kilograms, and Business North Carolina reports that more than half of Walmart’s items qualify.
The publication added that delivery is currently free in the Wing app and for Walmart customers.
A home needs a clear drop spot about the size of a picnic blanket to qualify for drone deliveries, according to Wing spokesman Tom Kuhn, and some apartment buildings with shared delivery spots qualify.
Flammable goods, alcohol and pharmaceutical products are excluded, although Wing’s own post advertises over-the-counter medicine.
The drones cruise at 46 to 61 metres and up to 97 km/h.