Amazon extends Prime Air drone deliveries to 8,000 Darlington households

Amazon has widened its Prime Air drone delivery service in Darlington, County Durham, to around 8,000 households, up from about 600 when its UK trial began in May.

The expansion follows a safety approval from the Civil Aviation Authority. Amazon is the first drone operator anywhere in the world to receive both SAIL 4 operating authorisation and flightworthiness validation from the CAA.

This clearance means its drones can travel greater distances and fly over more densely populated areas, opening the way for a wider rollout across the UK.

Prime Air lets customers order everyday items such as beauty products, baby supplies and tech accessories, delivered in less than two hours at no extra charge for Prime members.

Products must weigh under 2.2kg and fit in a large shoebox. Customers need a suitable garden or driveway and must live no more than 7.5 miles from the company’s fulfilment centre in Darlington.

Deliveries are made by Amazon’s electric MK30 drones, which use machine-learning technology to spot and avoid obstacles including people, animals, washing lines and trampolines.

Theunis Scheepers, director of Prime Air Europe at Amazon, said the approval followed years of engineering work and was a significant milestone for the business.

“For customers in Darlington it means getting what they need quickly, safely, and reliably,” he said.

The move takes Amazon further in its push to turn drone delivery into a mainstream way of fulfilling orders. It is more than ten years since founder Jeff Bezos first set out what Amazon hoped to do with the technology.

Darlington is still the only UK location where Prime Air is operating, and Amazon has not confirmed the next location or a timetable.