Scotland’s first drone port is set for take off after plans were agreed to start doing test flights for NHS deliveries – aiding the Covid-19 response.
The innovative trials are set to commence next month for ‘visual line of sight’ flights near Montrose on the Angus coast.
They are part of a plan to decarbonise transport for the NHS and will include medical equipment, samples and medicines between Dundee and Angus – assisting the Covid response.
The new environmentally friendly and efficient service will provide the NHS with an on-demand collection and delivery service, allowing samples to be collected from local medical practices for analysis at pathology laboratories at larger hospitals quicker and more reliably than current transport alternatives.
In future, the plans could also be expanded to include deliveries to patients via local collection hubs or even directly to homes.
David Fairweather, Angus Council leader, said: “By introducing drone transportation services and working with the NHS we can play our part in transforming the health system in Angus. This level of improvement could potentially allow life-saving treatment to be able to commence earlier by reducing testing times, speeding up diagnoses for patients, all at a reduced cost to the NHS by reducing the reliance on expensive taxi transportation that currently exists.
“As the significant demands continue for Covid-19 testing, we are delighted to lead the way through innovative technologies to increase connectivity with our rural facilities, at a time that the NHS requires greater support.”
Mercury Drone Ports will run the trials airspace area to support drone companies and end users conduct onshore and offshore drone flight trials. It supports Angus’s aims to become a centre of excellence for the development of drone technologies in Scotland.
The initiative is being supported by the UK Government’s £26.5 million Angus Fund, as part of the Tay Cities Region Deal. Mercury Drone Ports is a public-private partnership between Angus Council and DTLX, supported by a number of local and national businesses.
Iain Stewart, UK Government minister for Scotland, said: “Drones have huge potential in Scotland, from connecting health services to remote communities, to helping maintain renewable energy installations, to assisting with Scottish aquaculture and environmental monitoring.
“The UK Government is investing in Scotland’s first Drone Port in Montrose to put Scotland at the forefront of innovation while bringing new jobs and investment to Angus.
“We are also supporting the innovative use of drones in the west of Scotland at Oban, with support from the Argyll and Bute Growth Deal and the UK’s Community Renewal Fund as part of £1.7 billion investment to level-up communities across Scotland.”
Chris Hind, clinical laboratory manager at NHS Tayside, said: “NHS Tayside is delighted to be part of this drone delivery trial. This project will benefit our understanding of future opportunities to develop and improve our supply chain and help resilience in response to challenges such as the Covid-19 pandemic.
“This trial operation will ensure that we have a fast and frequent transport service which can be used for Covid-19 testing as well as a range of other pathology samples.
“To increase our capacity in diagnostic testing, NHS Tayside plans to extend phlebotomy testing hours at some regional medical practices. We are very interested in testing additional logistical support to transport patient samples, which would permit samples to be taken at later times than currently possible for delivery to the main testing lab at Dundee Ninewells Hospital.
“We believe drone delivery services will help to improve diagnostic sample transport times across Angus rural areas, helping NHS Tayside to provide an equitable level of healthcare across Angus, regardless of a patient’s geographical location. In addition, this can be a more efficient, cost effective and lower carbon means of increasing capacity whilst improving provision in the region.”
Mercury Drone Ports will be based in Montrose within clean growth enterprise hub, ZeroFour, a partnership between Angus Council and Crown Estate Scotland, which currently has planning permission in principle for a mixed-use business park. The new hub along with the drone port, forms part of Angus Council’s long-term plans to drive sustainable development, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, improve energy efficiency and create renewable solutions for transportation and energy across Angus and the wider Tay Cities region.