Amazon is advancing its plans to roll out drone delivery services in the UK, seeking permission to launch operations from its warehouse in Darlington, County Durham. If approved, the company’s Prime Air service will deliver packages via drones to customers within a 7.5-mile radius of the facility. The initiative represents Amazon’s latest effort to integrate drone technology into its logistics network.
The tech giant plans to meet with local residents next week to discuss its proposal and is also working with the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) to secure approval for the necessary airspace use. Additionally, Amazon must obtain consent from the local council to use the warehouse site for drone takeoff and landing.
Once operational, customers will have the option to select drone delivery during checkout and specify a drop-off location using an aerial map of their address. The battery-powered drones, capable of carrying packages weighing up to 2.3kg, offer an alternative to traditional delivery methods.
This isn’t Amazon’s first foray into drone delivery in the UK. The company conducted its first commercial drone delivery in Cambridge nearly eight years ago but scaled back its UK drone program in 2021. More recently, Amazon was granted approval by the CAA to test drones beyond a pilot’s visual line of sight at an undisclosed location. Despite these efforts, the rollout of commercial drone delivery in the UK and Italy has been slower than anticipated, with initial plans to launch by the end of 2024 yet to materialize.
Prime Air is already operational in parts of the US, including Texas and Arizona, as well as in Italy. However, the service has faced setbacks, including temporary suspensions and drone crashes. In December, two drones crashed at a testing site in Oregon due to a software issue triggered by light rain. One drone reportedly caught fire upon impact. Amazon has since implemented software updates and insists the crashes were not the primary reason for the service suspension.
While Amazon has not provided a specific launch timeline for the Darlington site, a spokesperson emphasized the company’s commitment to delivering safe and reliable drone services. “We are ready and excited to make drone delivery a reality for our UK customers. We’ve successfully partnered with regulators and communities elsewhere in the world and are working to do the same in the UK,” the spokesperson stated.
The move comes as part of broader efforts across industries to integrate drones into delivery networks. The Royal Mail, for example, has been using drones to deliver mail to remote communities like the Shetland Islands and Orkney. Similarly, BT has invested in creating a 165-mile “drone superhighway” across southern and central England as part of its Project Skyway initiative.
