Argyll and Bute could take off as a pioneering location for drone technology following a series of successful trials across the region.
Argyll and Bute Council collaborated with private company Skyports to carry out a large volume of Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) trials over the west coast of Scotland.
Completed last August, the year-long project received funding totalling £250,000 through the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology’s Regulators’ Pioneer Fund (RPF) and a report on the trials has now been approved by councillors.
The aim of the project was to examine the feasibility of creating low-density airspace over rural areas that would enable drones to be deployed safely alongside regularly scheduled manned aircraft.
The council carried out trials for school meal deliveries and worked with partners including Royal Mail and NHS on deliveries of mail, medication to hospitals and equipment between Islay and Jura.
The council’s Roads and Infrastructure Service also arranged trials for use in vegetation management along the River Ba on Mull while Scottish and Southern Electric Networks used drones for a transmission powerline from Dunoon to Arrochar. Network Rail also deployed the technology on railway inspections between Taynuilt and Dalmally.
Councillor John Armour, the council’s Policy Lead for Roads, Transport and Amenity Services, said: “While discussions are still ongoing with the Civil Aviation Authority, these trials have been extremely valuable in establishing the benefits drones would bring to delivery of services in Argyll and Bute.
“A key aspect of the report involves outlining the benefits and impacts drone services can bring to remote island communities and seeing how this could help the expansion of drone networks within these areas.
“It also enhances the feasibility of establishing a permanent drone base such as the Advanced Air Mobility Hub at Oban Airport, which has been allocated £4 million through the Rural Growth Deal programme subject to a successful business case being approved.”
Lord Patrick Vallance, the Minister for Science, Research, and Innovation, said:
“From delivering school meals to remote areas to supporting NHS deliveries, these trials show how drones could transform essential services for rural communities.
“By ensuring regulations keep pace with new innovation, the Regulators’ Pioneer Fund is supporting efforts to make the UK a leader in new technologies, like future transport, while improving lives as part of our Plan for Change.”
Notes to editors
In November 2022, the UK Government awarded Argyll and Bute Council a grant of £250,000 via the Regulators’ Pioneer Fund to deliver the UAV project which started in September 2023 and finished delivery by August 2024. The RPF is a grant-based fund to enable UK regulators and local authorities to help create a UK regulatory environment that encourages business innovation and investment. The current £12 million round is being delivered by the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology.
