Amazon has launched its first drone delivery service in the UK, starting with a limited rollout in Darlington, County Durham.
The service is currently available to eligible customers within a 7.5-mile radius of Amazon’s fulfilment centre. Only smaller packages weighing under 5lb, or around 2.2kg, can be delivered by drone. These include everyday items such as beauty products, batteries, cables, stationery, and other light household products.
Amazon believes there is strong demand for faster deliveries and says it plans to expand the service slowly. For now, drone deliveries in the UK arrive within two hours, while the company says its average drone delivery time in the United States is around 36 minutes.
One of the first people to try the service was Rob Shield, who allowed Amazon to use an Airbnb on his farm for early test runs. He said the service first felt like a novelty, with people ordering small items just to see the drone arrive. Over time, he began using it for practical things he needed quickly, such as tape measures and other everyday tools.
The drones drop parcels from a height of about 12ft into a customer’s garden or yard. Because of that, not everyone will be able to use the service. In Darlington, eligible customers need outdoor space where the drone can safely release the package.
Local reaction has been mixed. Some residents said they would prefer a person to hand over their parcel instead of having it dropped into the garden. Others said they might try it once but would probably continue using traditional delivery methods.
Amazon is using its latest MK30 drone for the Darlington rollout. The aircraft is designed to fly autonomously and uses sensors to avoid obstacles such as washing lines, trampolines, people and other aircraft. It also uses GPS to decide exactly where to release the package.
The company says safety remains a key focus. Amazon already operates drone deliveries in five US states, although one MK30 drone hit the side of an apartment building near Dallas earlier this year after losing GPS signal. No one was injured, and Amazon says it has since stopped deliveries to those types of apartments.
Darlington was chosen because it offers a mix of residential areas, major roads, an airport and an Amazon hub in one location. That makes it useful for testing how the drones perform in different conditions.
The project remains in its early stage. Amazon has approval from the UK Civil Aviation Authority to run the trial until the end of the year, while temporary protected airspace has been granted for autonomous flights. Darlington Borough Council also gave temporary planning permission so the concept could be tested.
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Amazon says the service can become commercially viable and insists it would not be investing in drone deliveries if it did not believe there was a real business case behind it.
