Drone ‘superhighway’ over the Home Counties gets go-ahead

MINISTERS have given the go-ahead to a 165-mile drone “superhighway” above the Home Counties.

Project Skyway will create a vast air corridor for unmanned aerial vehicles, controlled by a special air traffic control system for drones in order to avoid collisions. The plans will connect the airspace above Reading, Oxford, Milton Keynes, Cambridge, Coventry and Rugby over the next two years, opening the region up to technologies such as drone package deliveries.

The air traffic management system means the drones will not need to be flown by a human pilot on the ground. Instead, an automated system will guide the drones along their flight path while avoiding passenger aircraft.

The drone highway uses technology developed by UK start-up Altitude Angel, which is building the air traffic control system, while BT will provide connectivity. It will receive £12m in government funding.

Richard Parker, chief executive of Altitude Angel, said: “Skyway can revolutionise the way we transport goods and travel in a way not experienced since the advent of the railways did in the 18th century.”

Tech companies have conducted experiments in the UK with unmanned drones for package deliveries, among them Amazon’s Prime Air division in Cambridge, but they have largely remained limited to trials.

The plans for the drone highway were announced as the Government confirmed £273m for new drone and aviation technologies as part of the Farnborough International Airshow.

Other projests include drones delivering medical supplies and mail to the Isles of Scilly, and in Scotland to deliver cancer drugs to remote communities.