The next time a hurricane cuts off Ocracoke Island, a new drone could deliver emergency supplies to the remote Outer Banks island.

The drone, from U.S.-based drone logistics company Volansi, looks something like a two-engine prop plane, a little smaller than a pickup truck. But it can take off and land vertically, like other more common drones.  

The North Carolina Department of Transportation's Aviation and Ferry divisions, along with Volansi, did two test flights from Hatteras to Ocracoke Thursday.

“This is a tremendous first step in better connecting Ocracoke Island to potentially life-saving supplies and equipment,” DOT Secretary Eric Boyette said in a news release. “Today, Ocracoke Island is accessible only by plane or by boat. What we’re working on here is an entirely new, third method of serving the needs of Ocracoke’s people.”

The drone, a Volansi C-10 Gemini, took off from the ferry dock in Hatteras Village and landed eight miles away at the dock on the north end of Ocracoke. The trip took 18 minutes.

On the first flight, the drone delivered space blankets, a small survival kit and a chocolate muffin to the island. On the second flight the drone brought bottles of water.

The drone can carry up to five pounds.

“This was just a small trial, but we hope to continue scaling this up to larger payloads and longer flights,” NCDOT Unmanned Aerial Systems Program Manager Ben Spain said. “Long-term, we could see deliveries coming to Ocracoke all the way from the mainland.”