Swedish startup AirForestry claims to have achieved a world first: the autonomous harvesting of a tree by drone in a real production forest. The company recently demonstrated how its six-metre-wide heavy-lift drone was able to independently locate, prune, fell, and transport a tree without the need for heavy forestry machinery or access roads. The system is designed for thinning operations, in which selected trees are removed to improve the growth of the remaining forest.
Drone replaces heavy forestry machinery
According to investor Norrsken Evolve, conventional thinning machines can weigh up to 20 tonnes, while the trees being removed typically weigh only around 80 kilograms. This causes significant damage to the forest floor, with more than 20% of the forest area reportedly affected in order to provide access for machinery.
AirForestry aims to solve this problem with a fully electric drone system that never touches the ground. Flying above the forest canopy, the drone uses computer vision to identify suitable trees before lowering a dedicated harvesting tool along the trunk. Branches are removed during the descent, after which an electric chainsaw cuts the trunk. The drone then transports the timber to a roadside collection point.
The drone has a diameter of approximately six metres and is capable of lifting tree trunks weighing up to 200 kilograms. The system is expected to start at around €450,000.
In addition to the first real-world tree harvest, AirForestry says it also successfully completed a fully autonomous harvest sequence at a test site. During this demonstration, the system independently performed every step of the process: approaching the tree, positioning itself, identifying the tree, pruning, felling, and transporting the timber.
Investor Johan Attby of Norrsken Evolve described the technology as a potentially transformative innovation for the forestry sector. Globally, thinning operations account for an estimated €14 billion in annual spending. According to AirForestry, its method could also result in 8% higher timber yield over a forest’s full lifecycle. In Sweden alone, eliminating heavy ground machinery could reportedly allow trees to store an additional 23 million tonnes of CO₂.
Development since 2020
AirForestry has been developing the system since 2020. In November 2023, the company first demonstrated that a drone could successfully lift and transport a tree trunk. Earlier this year, AirForestry also launched a collaboration with Norwegian state-owned forestry company Statskog to test the technology in mountainous terrain near Trondheim.
The company is specifically targeting hard-to-reach areas where conventional forestry machinery is either inefficient or environmentally damaging. According to AirForestry, the drones are capable of operating in harsh conditions, including snow, rain, temperatures down to -20°C, and wind gusts of up to 13 m/s.