Is not the problem with a parachute drop into an uncontrolled zone that those on the ground might well find themselves rushing to stand underneath the descending pallets in a bid to be the 'first in line'?
I guess that, despite the disadvantages of some broken produce, the free-fall method might well be safer all round. If I'm not mistaken, this was also the method used by the RAF in Ethopia in the 1980s. Perhaps for the same reason?