Council tests drones to open horizons and cut costs

Argyll and Bute Council collaborated with Skyports to conduct trials of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV) over Scotland’s West Coast, to "explore how drone services can benefit remote communities and businesses".

The year-long project, which finished in September 2024, was funded by £250,000 from the UK Government’s Regulator Pioneer Fund.

Councillors on the environment, development and infrastructure committee on March 20 are being asked to publish the results. 

The study investigated the feasibility of an airspace over rural areas that allows the safe integration of drones with manned aircraft. "This required close working with the Civil Aviation Authority to look at ground-breaking new regulations," the report said.

Successful trials would provide a nationwide "blueprint" towards "unlocking UAV airspace in the UK", and "a network across the West Coast of Scotland, including inter island, to allow UAV trials for multi-logistic delivery purposes".

The council undertook trials for school meal deliveries, as well as working with regulatory services in trials for food and water samples, and with the Royal Mail and NHS in delivering mail and hospital drugs and equipment between Islay and Jura.

Alongside the transfer of goods, the council also trialled drones in surveys and surveillance, for example, in vegetation management along the River Ba on Mull.

Scottish and Southern Electric Networks (SSEN) also carried out trials for a transmission powerline from Dunoon to Arrochar, and Network Rail undertook UAV surveillance trials of railway inspections between Taynuilt and Dalmally.

The report added: "By establishing the benefits drones bring to Argyll and Bute, this contributes to the feasibility of establishing a permanent drone base such as the Advanced Air Mobility Hub at Oban Airport, that has been allocated £4M through the Rural Growth Deal programme subject to a successful business case being approved.

"A critical aspect of the report involves outlining the benefits and impacts drone services can bring to remote island communities and seeing how regulations can help enhance the expansion of drone networks within these regions.

"The study also defined other potential use cases that the council could be interested in exploring that would have an impact in providing efficiency, enhanced safety, and reduced cost within council services."

The paper concluded: "There is a strong use case for drone-enabled deliveries which would provide a significant timesaving for end users. Increased payload weight and further distances are keen to be explored to establish the feasibility of expanded operations."