Tech giant Amazon is planning to launch its first drone deliveries in the UK from its Darlington fulfilment centre.
The US online giant confirmed this week it will lodge planning applications with the local authority and seek clearance from the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) for the drone-based delivery service, known as Prime Air.
Prime Air is already delivering parcels from two sites in the US using a fleet of Amazon-designed, built and operated MK30 drones (pictured).
However the company paused its deliveries at both sites, Bloomberg reported earlier this month, in order to carry out a software fix, after two of its MK30 drones crashed in rainy weather at a testing facility.
It is the MK30 drones, which can carry parcels up to 2.2kg in weight, which Amazon has already confirmed will be used for UK deliveries.
Announcing its plans to expand the service into the UK, Amazon 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.”
“We are announcing that Prime Air is taking steps to start planning for initial flights from our fulfilment centre in Darlington.
“While there is still much work to do, this is an exciting step forward.
“A planning application will be lodged with the local authority which will seek permission to build our flight operations facilities at the site, along with applying for authorisation from the Civil Aviation Authority to fly a drone in the airspace.
“Once those agreements are in place, we will be able to begin hiring team members to launch drone delivery.
The statement added: “In the meantime, we will also engage with the Darlington community to answer questions and collect feedback as we seek to offer this new option for delivery.”
The company is set to hold its first meeting with the community on 5 February at the Dolphin Centre in Darlington.
Amazon said the optional drone delivery service will be offered to customers, who will be able to sign up for it via their existing Amazon account.
However Amazon has yet to confirm a launch date for the service.
A spokesperson said: “We have nothing more to share at this time, but we will engage with the community to answer questions and collect feedback as we seek to offer this new option for delivery.”
Amazon has already tested drone delivery systems in the UK, launching a trial in 2016 which saw the first autonomous Prime Air delivery in Cambridgeshire.
Tees Valley Mayor Ben Houchen, said: “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.
“We have worked tirelessly with Amazon to bring this UK first to Teesside which will support high-quality jobs, deliver vital multi-million-pound investment in our local economy and drive growth across Teesside, Darlington and Hartlepool.”
