Scaled-down prototype of the Black SwanImage source, Dronamics
Image caption, A scaled-down version of the Black Swan at an airfield in Bulgaria

Svilen Rangelov has a facial hair. He says it is eight years of growth.

He and his brother formed Dronamics as Europe's answer to the emerging market for cargo drones.

They would only shave their beards after the first flight of the drone they've been building in their native Bulgaria.

Amazon was experimenting with drones at the time he established Dronamics. Mr Rangelov didn't believe in the idea of drones delivering personal goods.

It was obvious to Mr Rangelov that flying a drone right up to someone's door was difficult. We did not like the idea of small drones. A different approach was taken by us.

When the prototype cargo aircraft takes to the air, this take on drone delivery will be a big hit.

Svilen Rangelov co-founder DronamicsImage source, Dronamics
Image caption, The beard is coming off when the Black Swan drone has flown says Svilen Rangelov co-founder of Dronamics

The drone is similar to a light aircraft but without a pilot's cabin and has the ability to land on short runways.

The name will be the Black Swan.

In Bulgaria air cargo means one large aircraft unloading goods onto a truck which then goes to a sorting centre where the delivery is broken down for the next stage of its journey to individual sites.

Taking a smaller load closer to the final recipient will cut costs and take trucks off the road, according to him.

There are over 3000 airstrips in Europe.

Black Swan has a combination of lightweight materials and a standard engine that sips petrol while the drones cruise on long and fuel efficient wings.

The package will fly at 20,000 feet above the mass of passenger air traffic. Dronamics sees this height band as unused airspace and is testing out a new synthetic aviation fuel which it claims will allow carbon neutral flights.

The Black Swan's cargo load is equal to that of a small van. We're not door to door.

The first drone cargo airline in Europe is planned by Dronamics. The cost and time taken by vehicles that cross Europe to deliver essential goods and parts will be cut out.

Hellmann cargo containerImage source, Hellmann
Image caption, German logistics giant Hellmann wants to connect Greek islands using drones

Hellmann is going to use drones. Jan Kleine- Lasthues has a long career in airfreight.

The new designs of drones will allow Hellmann to fly goods that previously traveled by road, but Mr Kleine- Lasthues doesn't think there will be competition from these new designs.

One of Hellmann's goals is to connect Greek islands by cargo drones.

The drones will be more frequent than ferries and we can use them to break down deliveries into several packages. They offer flexibility and speed.

The whole of Western Europe is within range of any EU based cargo hub according to Dronamics.

A full-scale prototype of the drone is expected to be airborne in early23.

Artists impression of the Black Swan droneImage source, Dronamics
Image caption, Dronamics hopes to get a full-scale prototype of the Black Swan drone airborne in early 2023

According to Dronamics, the European regulators has a limited licence to operate. Hellmann is going to start flying them in 2023.

Mr Kleine- Lasthues thinks that earlier drone delivery models are dead. I didn't believe in parcel drones. That's the reason we're working with Dronamics.

Bristow is a US group that operates helicopters around the world. Bristow wants to buy up to 100 drones from Elroy Air.

While the current crop of passenger-carrying Electric Vertical Take-Off (Evtol) designs features all-electric power, the Elroy Air cargo drones will run on a hybrid electric engine, a small turbine.

The hybrid design allows the drones to refuel at existing facilities instead of using docking stations. It burns less than a helicopter does.

David Stepanek, a former US Marine Corps helicopter technician who is now a Bristow executive, said that pure electric power means you're constrained by where you put the charging base.

Elroy Air, cargo droneImage source, Elroy Air
Image caption, Elroy Air's drone should be able to haul 100kg of cargo up to 300 miles

Bristow is looking at using the Elroy drones to back up its operations in locations such as West Africa where the offshore oil industry needs to shift equipment.

Elroy Air is working on a large multi- engined, vertical take-off drone that can heave a 500 lbs load up to 480 km.

Kofi Asante was researching at the freight arm of the ride-sharing company. He says that the idea of attaching a cargo Pod to a truck and then detaching it from the truck is similar to the idea of a cargo Drones.

He describes his relationship with the FAA as positive, with a test flight for a full-sized drone planned for later in the decade.

Chapparal is large by civil drones standards at over 26 feet in width. Mr Asante says that's the point.

It is comparable to a small plane in terms of load but costs less than a helicopter.

It's possible that you won't be ordering a flying drones delivery to your home soon. The death of one dream has opened the way for a more practical idea.

Clean-shaven leadership should come about at Dronamics.