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印度初创公司 Airbound 开发“火箭形态”配送无人机，还要和卡车比货运成本_我的网站

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A | COPENHAGEN, Denmark -- Dozen of activists protested Wednesday at Norway's parliament to express frustration over the Norwegian government's failure to shut down a wind farm they say endangers the way of life of Sami reindeer herders.At the center of the dispute are the 151 turbines of Europe’s largest onshore wind farm, which is located in central Norway’s Fosen district, about 450 kilometers (280 miles) north of Oslo. The activists say a transition to green energy shouldn’t come at the expense of the rights of Indigenous people. They have demonstrated repeatedly against the wind farm's continued operation since the Supreme Court of Norway ruled in October 2021 that the construction of the turbines had violated the rights of the Sami, who have used the land for reindeer for centuries.”The trust of Sami in the state is at a breaking point,” activist Ella Marie Hætta Isaksen said Wednesday. “It is absurd, because the reindeer owners of Fosen won in court. The government simply does not respect the democracy.”A group of about 20 Sami, many dressed in traditional garments, entered the parliament building and started chanting in a central hallway. Norwegian broadcaster NRK said some protesters chained themselves outside the building and hundreds had gathered on the main street leading up to Norway's parliament, the Storting. Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre has acknowledged “ongoing human rights violations” and the government has repeatedly apologized for failing to act despite the Supreme Court ruling. Energy Minister Terje Aasland wrote Wednesday on Facebook that it was the Norwegian government's responsibility to find a solution.“However, the demolition of all wind turbines at Fosen now, as the protesters demand, is not relevant,” Aasland wrote. The protesters want the wind mills removed from their land.In June, activists protested outside Gahr Støre's office. They occupied the Ministry of Petroleum and Energy for four days in February, and later blocked the entrances to 10 ministries.。

B | 8 月 25 日消息，据外媒 TechCrunch 今天（25 日）报道，印度自主飞行无人机初创公司 Airbound 完成了 3,700 万美元（注：现汇率约合 2.49 亿元人民币）A 轮融资，希望最终把无人机空运货物的成本降到与公路卡车运输相当的水平。Airbound 不到一年前刚刚获得 865 万美元（现汇率约合 5,829 万元人民币）种子轮融资，本轮完成后，这家成立 3 年的公司累计融资已接近 5,000 万美元（现汇率约合 3.37 亿元人民币）。

C | Airbound 等初创公司认为，相比公路车辆，无人机运送部分货物速度更快、成本更低。无人机配送已经出现了一些成功案例，但无论运输规模还是适用范围，目前都远不能与卡车运输相比。Airbound 希望从飞行器本身入手缩小差距，让无人机拥有与地面运输竞争的成本优势。传统飞行器很大一部分能源都消耗在承载自身重量上，而不是运输货物，因此空运成本居高不下，运输小批量货物时尤其明显。Airbound 创始人兼 CEO 纳曼 · 普什普解释，公司希望制造自身重量低于所载货物重量的垂直飞行无人机，以解决这一问题。目前其打造的 TRT 无人机重约 1.5kg，可以运载约 1kg 货物，正在开发的下一代产品预计重约 3kg，载重量最高可达约 5kg。Airbound 采用类似火箭的尾座式设计，以直立姿态垂直起飞，升空后转为水平飞行，降落时再恢复直立姿态。普什普表示，公司未来即使制造更大的无人机，也会继续保留垂直起降能力，避免对跑道产生依赖。

D | “我们的目标是，让所有运输最终都能做到与卡车运输成本相当。”Airbound 成立于 2023 年，已经在印度南部的班加罗尔和贡土尔完成超过 1.3 万次自主飞行。公司下一步的目标充满野心，计划建立一个连接安得拉邦 3 座城市的无人机配送网络，并已经与当地政府签署协议，最终实现每天 1 万次飞行，为零售、电商和医疗领域运送货物。“我们想扮演的是波音的角色，也就是提供各地航空公司都依赖的飞机，而不是自己成为航空公司。”然而，监管限制让 Airbound 目前很难把大量飞行转化为真正的商业收入。公司已经拥有超过 150 名员工，整体上却仍处于基本没有营收的阶段。