Amazon has started its first drone delivery service in the UK, operating out of its fulfilment centre in Darlington.

The Prime Air service will use Amazon’s latest MK30 drone, which operates autonomously using detect-and-avoid technology, ensuring the safety of people, pets and property.

Prime Air is a drone delivery system from Amazon designed to get packages, weighing up to 2.3kg, safely into customers’ hands in less than two hours. Eligible Prime customers in the area can opt-in to drone delivery and choose from thousands of products, everyday essentials, beauty items, and office and tech supplies.

“Starting flights in Darlington marks an important milestone in bringing drone delivery to the UK,” said David Carbon, vice president of Prime Air. “Safety is our top priority and we have worked closely with Darlington Council and the Civil Aviation Authority. Our MK30 drones are designed to operate quietly and efficiently. We look forward to demonstrating how this innovative technology can serve the people of Darlington while maintaining the highest safety standards.”

The MK30 is as quiet as an average van delivery. Keeping noise and perceived volume down was a goal for the drone development team, who experimented with various propeller designs to meet their goals.

Safety is Amazon’s top priority and Prime Air systems are built with multiple safety features. The MK30 has received UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA, www.caa.co.uk) approval to conduct operations.

As the MK30 descends for delivery, its onboard systems identify and steer clear of obstacles such as clotheslines or trampolines, items that might not appear in satellite maps.

These same cameras continuously monitor the surrounding airspace during flight, determining whether evasive action is needed to avoid other aircraft entering the drone’s flight path. The perception technology relies on machine-learning models trained to recognise various objects, including people, animals, physical barriers and other airborne vehicles.

The development team built an independent monitoring computer that oversees the main flight control system. When the monitoring system identifies irregularities during flight, it can instantly switch control to a secondary controller while initiating an automated return-to-base procedure.

For the latest on Prime Air, visit www.aboutamazon.com/news/tag/prime-air.