Amazon is “on the precipice” of securing approval to extend its drone delivery operation across the whole of Darlington, as it prepares to roll out the service across the UK.
The US tech giant launched a “limited” series of flights in February, enabling customers within a 7.5-mile radius of its County Durham site to have certain items delivered by drone.
Amazon announced last January that Darlington would act as its test centre in the UK, marking the first time Prime Air has expanded outside the USA.
Following more than 500 flights and deliveries, the firm stated it is now seeking permission from the Civil Aviation Authority to cover the entire town.
David Carbon, vice-president of Prime Air, said Amazon expects to get permission “very soon”, with the ultimate objective of bringing the service to the whole of the UK.
Eligible customers in Darlington are presently able to receive their items within two hours, provided the package weighs less than 5lb.
Staff at the site said their best delivery time so far is 39 minutes.
During a visit, Mr Carbon told the Press Association the advantages of a drone over a van are “really simple”.
He said: “If you need something in 60 minutes or less – and our average click to delivery time, closing in on a million deliveries in the US, is 34 minutes.
“If you’re going to cobble a bunch of stuff together, it’s hard to get the timing right to get it all in the right place.
“So if you’re doing a single pointed delivery, it’s much easier to go from point to point faster.
“The other advantage is it keeps people off the road. It takes congestion away from the roads, which means you’re not adding to congestion and traffic and the risk that comes with being on the road and all that sort of stuff, and it’s environmentally sustainable.
“So there’s lots of advantages that come with the drone, but most importantly for our customers, we’ve never had a customer say, ‘send my package slower’.
“Speed is always critical.”
As part of the limited launch in Darlington, Prime Air is available to customers with a garden, yard, or driveway for items that weigh less than 5lb and fit into a large shoebox.
Mr Carbon said the size and weight limitations made about 68% of items that people order eligible for drone delivery.
During checkout, customers see a satellite map of their property showing options for “delivery zones”, pre-identified using Amazon’s digital mapping and AI systems.
The customer can then select one of these drop-off zones and is reminded to keep the area clear.
In the UK, Prime Air is currently included as part of an Amazon Prime membership with no additional delivery fee, but this will be evaluated as the service expands.
Mr Carbon said the firm was “working through those details” but it would “not be much of an extra cost”.
An investigation was launched in July after an Amazon drone delivering a package crashed into a garden in Darlington.
The company said no-one was injured and the initial assessment was that an object extending above the roof of a moving vehicle “inadvertently came into contact with a Prime Air drone during delivery”.
A spokesperson said “the drone responded as designed and came safely to the ground”.
Mr Carbon said there had been “some” Prime Air incidents but “it’s not a percentage that is high at all”.
He said: “In an aerospace programme, you design to the safety level that you want, and our safety level is one commensurate with one that’s laid out through the regulatory framework, and that’s what we designed with.
“That’s why we have no single points of failure in the drone. That’s why we never lose control of the drone, if something was to happen, we’re always in control.
“We’ve designed with those factors in mind, so that we can meet the most rigorous safety requirements for this class of vehicles.”
Mr Carbon said the MK30 drones were “not really” noticeable to the wider public as they completed their deliveries.
“When you’re up around 400 feet or 130 metres, they’re really hard to pick out.
“It’s a big sky, a big back-drop, so they’re really hard to pick out.”
If weather conditions make it unsafe to fly, Prime Air is not available, and a planned demonstration for local stakeholders could not go ahead on Thursday because of high winds.
Mr Carbon said: “We’ve designed for light rains, light snow, wind gusts, up to the 28mph mark… but like all aerospace… you’d not take off when the weather’s not suitable to fly, and this is no different.”
He said the feedback from customers had been “awesome”, adding: “People are thankful they can get what they want when they want to, without having to jump in their car.
“Things like baby formula, your headphones – if you’re going to the airport and you can’t find your headphones.
“All these everyday essentials. whether they be health and beauty, or whether they be healthcare, or whether they just be anything, because you’ve got a huge selection to pick from.”
