Women on Waves, an abortion support group, is set to use drones to explore unchartered territory in reproductive care.
On Saturday, an unmanned aerial vehicle will aim to begin its journey at 11AM and fly WHO approved abortion pills -- mifepristone and misoprostol -- from Frankfurt an der Oder, Germany to the Polish town of Słubice, where abortion is illegal.
Frankfurt an der Oder, Germany:
In Poland strict legal requirements mean abortion is only allowed in cases involving rape or incest and when the mother's life is in danger or when the foetus is seriously malformed.
The flight is not expected to take more than 20 to 30 minutes and the drones in operation will be quite small, weighing less than five kilograms.
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Women on Waves are working with a range of abortion support groups including Berlin based Cocia Basia and Feminteka Foundation from Warsaw.
In an interview with the New York Times, Women on Waves founder Rebecca Gomperts said:
"Initially it will be a very small drone, not a large one like the ones DHL, Amazon and Google are using. We aren’t there yet.”
While the drone itself is legal, it will be illegal for women to take the pills. However, the nonprofit have claimed that any polish women interested in taking the pills will not risk 'punishment'.
According to WHO, Poland is among the Eastern European countries that have the highest abortion rates in the world -- 103 abortions per 100 live births.
If the flight on Saturday proves to be successful, Gomperts has suggested that a similar tactic could be used in Ireland, where abortions laws are equally strict.
She told The Telegraph:
“We’re very interested in the new developments around drones,” she said. “In a sense it’s a campaign to call attention to the reality for women in Poland. But there’s a future for it as a delivery model. We might do it in Ireland.”