UK launches first postal deliveries by drone

Mail on the Scottish isles of Orkney will be delivered by drones starting Tuesday, the first regular postal service by the aerial devices in the UK.

Letters and packages will be transported from Royal Mail’s Kirkwall delivery office to Stromness, where the drone deliveries will bring them to staff on Graemsay and Hoy for postal workers to carry out their usual delivery routes.

Service

“Anything that helps to maintain the universal service, especially in areas of the isles which are more difficult to reach, is something that we should give a chance to support,” Alistair Carmichael, the MP for Orkney and Shetland, said in a statement.

“Royal Mail remains a critical part of keeping the isles connected –- and local knowledge and care are vital to that network.”

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Royal Mail said the drone service was expected to significantly improve service levels and delivery times to Graemsay and Hoy, where weather and geography can cause disruptions to delivery services.

While the service will initially operate for three months, it could be continued on a permanent basis under existing regulatory frameworks due to Orkney’s unique landscape and the proximity of the islands to one another.

Drones and safety

Royal Mail, which is partnering with Skyports Drone Services, said the use of electric drones for inter-island delivery would also improve safety by ensuring postal workers can deliver between ports without risk.

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“By leveraging drone technology, we are revolutionising mail services in remote communities, providing more efficient and timely delivery, and helping to reduce the requirement for emissions-producing vehicles,” said Alex Brown, director of Skyports Drone Services.

The world’s first drone delivery service was launched in Reykjavik in 2017, with people in the Icelandic capital able to receive food and other goods direct at their doors via an autonomous flying vehicle.

In 2022, the pharmacy chain Boots became the first in the UK to deliver prescription medicines by drone, shipping medicines from Thorney Island, near Portsmouth on the southern coast, to the Isle of Wight.

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