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Amazon tests to help inform UK approach to drone deliveries


Amazon has announced plans to test the delivery of parcels using airborne 'drones' in the UK in trials the UK's Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) has said will help shape future regulation.

Paul Misener, Amazon’s vice president of global innovation policy and communications, said the tests will help the company move closer to achieving its goal "of using drones to safely deliver parcels in 30 minutes to customers in the UK and elsewhere around the world".

"Using small drones for the delivery of parcels will improve customer experience, create new jobs in a rapidly growing industry, and pioneer new sustainable delivery methods to meet future demand," Misener said. "The UK is charting a path forward for drone technology that will benefit consumers, industry and society."

Amazon said "three key innovations" will be put to the test in its trials. It will explore using drones "beyond line of sight operations in rural and suburban areas", and assess whether sensor technology can be relied upon to ensure drones "identify and avoid obstacles". Amazon will also carry out "flights where one person operates multiple highly-automated drones", it said.

The retail giant has been granted permission from the CAA to carry out the tests.

CAA policy director Tim Johnson said: "We want to enable the innovation that arises from the development of drone technology by safely integrating drones into the overall aviation system. These tests by Amazon will help inform our policy and future approach."

In the UK, commercial use of unmanned aircraft is prohibited without the consent of the CAA.

Ben Gardner of Pinsent Masons, the law firm behind Out-Law.com, said that the existing 'dronecode' issued by the CAA, in conjunction with air traffic control service NATS and BALPA, the pilots' union, lacks detail and that a more robust regulatory framework would be welcome.

"The trial provides a key opportunity for the government and the CAA to develop a more robust legal framework to regulate the use of drone technology in the UK," Gardner said. "The current dronecode which has been formulated by the CAA is light touch and lacks real 'teeth'."

"Whilst the trial appears to be aimed at looking at how the CAA and government can develop detailed legal rules around operation, there are wider implications around issues such as health and safety, insurance and data protection. By way of example, as soon as the drones are out of the operator’s line of sight, cameras are likely to be used to navigate the drones. This could bring about privacy issues depending on what data is captured by the cameras and how it is used," he said.

"With increasing reports of 'near misses' with aircraft and usage in built up public areas, a chance to introduce more detailed regulations in this area is welcome. As with driverless car trials, the journey to mainstream use of drones for deliveries will be an interesting one paved with legal, ethical and social questions," Gardner said.

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