Argyll and Bute could take off as a pioneering location for drone technology following a series of successful trials across the region.

Completed last August, a year-long project undertaken by Argyll and Bute Council in collaboration with private drone company Skyports saw a large volume of Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) trials over the west coast of Scotland.

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 drone trials for school meal deliveries and worked with partners, including Royal Mail and the NHS, on deliveries of mail, medication to hospitals and equipment between Islay and Jura.

The council’s Roads and Infrastructure Service also arranged drone trials for use in vegetation management, 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.

The project received funding totalling £250,000 through the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology’s £12 million Regulators’ Pioneer Fund (RPF), with a report on the trials now approved by councillors.

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.”

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Over the last year, Scotland has seen a significant uptick in the number of drone deployments covering a number of use cases, particularly for remote areas.

In May, a team of mobile connectivity and drone specialists in Angus demonstrated the use of 5G drones as ‘moving connectivity bubbles’ with the potential to transform mountain search and rescue missions.

Following that, July saw the launch of a trial by the Royal Mail to deliver mail by drone, with flights running between the isles of Islay and Jura in the Inner Hebrides, while in August the UK’s first commercial drone mail service, the Orkney I-Port pilot programme, was extended until at least February 2026. 

In a first for Scotland, drones were also used last summer to transport laboratory specimens between NHS boards, cutting critical delivery times from five hours to just thirty-five minutes.