AMAZON drone deliveries are set for take off in the UK for the first time.
The tech giant has been using them in the US since 2022 and had said in 2023 they would be taking to the air here by the end of last year.
Amazon drone deliveries are set for take off in the UK for the first time[/caption]
Amazon is today set to announce plans for flights from a delivery centre in the North East.
Bosses will say: “Prime Air is taking steps to start planning for initial flights from our fulfilment centre in Darlington.”
The drones will be able to transport goods in shoe box-sized package within 30 minutes.
But the maximum weight of deliveries is no more than 5lbs, or 2.2kg, ruling out the possibility of bulky goods.
Amazon’s drone device, the MK30, has been updated so it can cope with rain — an essential for the British weather.
However insiders cautioned that the process could still take many months before Amazon drones take to our skies.
Amazon’s Prime Air still has to get the green light from the Civil Aviation Authority and local planning permissions to use the airspace and a landing dock next to its warehouse in Darlington, Co Durham.
But an Amazon spokesman said. “We are ready and excited to make drone delivery a reality for our UK customers.
“We have built safe and reliable drone delivery services elsewhere in the world in close partnership with regulators and the communities we serve, and we are working to do the same in the UK.”
Tees Valley Mayor Ben Houchen said: “I am delighted that Teesside will become home to Amazon’s first UK drone delivery service.
“In Teesside we do things differently.
“We say yes when others say it’s too difficult.
“We are grabbing the opportunities and the optimism of the tech revolution — so it’s no surprise that Amazon has chosen Darlington as the location to launch Prime Air in the UK.”
The drones will be able to transport goods in a shoe box-sized package within 30 minutes[/caption]
