(Yicai Global) Mar. 02 -- Online retail giant JD.Com Inc. has started operations at the world's first unmanned smart delivery terminal in Xi'an, the provincial capital of central Shaanxi province.

The 14 square-meter center will enable the Beijing-based retailer to provide last-mile logistics services to customers in urban and rural areas, Jiemian News reported.

JD.Com Inc. recently gained approval from China's aviation regulator for the world's first national pilot program to test delivery drones on a large scale, also in Shaanxi province, making it the first company certified to deliver products using drones on a provincial level. 

The facility has storage capacity equivalent to 28 containers and is served by an unmanned terminal vehicle. When in operation, the drone sends goods on the top of the terminal and automatically unloads them. The goods are then automatically distributed while robots carry out storage and packing as well as sorting and loading. Product distribution robots then deliver packages to customers.