Inside Amazon's first UK drone delivery site for Prime Air

Key takeaways

Amazon drones are delivering parcels in Darlington, England, as part of the launch of Prime Air in the UK.
It is the first time Prime Air is available to customers outside of the U.S.
Customers within a 7.5-mile radius of the fulfillment center can have certain items delivered by drone.

Just a few miles from the center of Darlington, England, is one of the country's most advanced Amazon fulfillment centers. The 465,000-square-foot site is fitted with state-of-the-art robotics technology and, as of February 2026, has been delivering parcels to customers by drone as part of the launch of Prime Air outside of the U.S.

Amazon's fulfillment center in Darlington, England, serves as a hub for the company's drone delivery operations in the UK.

Amazon first announced plans to launch its Prime Air drone delivery service in the UK in 2023, with the northern town of Darlington being confirmed as its first location in 2025. It's the first time Amazon has expanded the service outside the U.S.

"I'm proud that Darlington is the first Prime Air location outside the U.S., and that UK customers are now experiencing this." said Amazon UK Country Manager John Boumphrey. "The team has spent years making this safe, reliable, and real."

Like in the U.S., deliveries in the UK are made within 60 minutes or less of a customer placing an order using the MK30 drone. The MK30 operates safely and highly autonomously using sophisticated, industry-leading detect-and-avoid technology, ensuring the safety of people, pets, and property.

“The fact that a customer can now order an item and have it delivered by drone shows how we keep innovating for customers to make their lives easier,” said Boumphrey. “Not that long ago, two-day delivery felt incredible, and now we're using drones."

How does Amazon's drone delivery work?

Standing roughly five feet tall with a wingspan of about five and a half feet, the MK30 can carry packages weighing up to five pounds.

Prime Air in the UK is currently available to customers with a garden, yard, or driveway in a 7.5-mile (12km) radius of the Darlington fulfillment center. When an item weighs 5lbs (2.2kg) or less and fits into a large shoebox, the customer can select the drone delivery option during checkout. Millions of items are currently eligible.

During checkout, customers see a satellite map of their property showing options for "delivery zones," pre-identified using Amazon's digital mapping and AI systems. This is all done digitally—no physical survey of the property is needed. The customer can then select one of these drop-off zones and will be reminded to keep the area clear.

As soon as an order has been placed, things kick into action at the fulfillment center.

The Darlington site is home to advanced robotics, meaning the customer's item is carried by Hercules, an autonomous lifting unit, to an associate who packs it in Prime Air packaging.

A Prime Air box being put on a shelf by an Amazon worker

Customized Prime Air boxes have cushioning technology at the bottom to protect the item during delivery.

Safety is always our top priority. Our drone has received Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) approval to conduct operations, and an associate always carries out a pre-flight inspection of the drone. The associate ensures everything is in working order and installs a charged battery before loading the package into the underside of the aircraft.

Sameer Mehmood, a ground handler at the site, explained: “One of the main things in the process is doing visual checks of the drone. I make sure the drone is in a good state, there's no damage, it's airworthy, and good to fly. You’ll see me checking the propellers, the struts, the motors, and doing a full 360 run of the drone."

Amazon worker in safety vest and gloves inserting a package into a Prime Air drone for delivery

Each Prime Air package is secured in a compartment on the underside of the drone.

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Mehmood joined Amazon in 2020 as a part-time associate at the fulfillment center before becoming a team leader shortly after. In 2026, he received the training needed to join the Prime Air team. “I think it's a really cool job and career path to get into... It just amazes me every time that we're actually delivering packages by drone.”

With inspections complete and the package loaded, the drone can take flight. It flies autonomously to the customer's property at speeds of up to 70mph and is quieter than an average delivery van.

Once the drone has arrived at the customer's property, it begins its descent while identifying and steering clear of obstacles. Cameras are also monitoring the surrounding airspace and can navigate around unexpected aircraft.

An Amazon warehouse worker transporting a drone to the launch pad before takeoff

Once the package is loaded and pre-flight checks are complete, the drone is wheeled to the launchpad where it will begin its journey.

The drone then drops the parcel from a safe height. Prime Air boxes have customized cushioning technology at the bottom to protect the item during delivery.

Once the delivery is complete, the drone returns to the fulfillment center.

Of course, British weather is famously unpredictable. The MK30 can fly safely in light rain and a range of temperatures and wind speeds, but if conditions make it unsafe to fly, Prime Air won't be available. Real-time weather signals are integrated into the checkout process, meaning that if conditions are unsuitable—heavy rain, high winds, or poor visibility—drone delivery simply won't appear as a shipping option, and the customer can choose another delivery method instead.

The technology behind the MK30

Engineers on the Prime Air team spent two years building the MK30. Before a single customer package took flight in either the UK or U.S., the drone underwent more than 5,100 test flights—totaling over 900 hours in the air. Experts drew on safety protocols adapted from the aviation, automotive, and military industries, stress-testing the drone against everything from high winds to unexpected obstacles in its flight path.

Experimental Prime Air drones lined up at an Amazon test site

The MK30 underwent rigorous safety and engineering testing during development.

The result is a machine built around one principle: no single point of failure should ever cause it to lose control. Every flight-critical system has a backup, and the drone's onboard perception system—a network of cameras and sensors—can detect and avoid obstacles that may not have been captured in satellite imagery.

Sound was another priority. During flight and at the point of delivery, the MK30 is quieter than many common neighborhood and household noises. Our drones spend most of the flight at higher altitudes and sound heard on the ground is minimal and short-lived, typically lasting about 30 seconds. The level of sound during drop-off is quieter than an idling delivery truck parked curbside or a passing passenger car. During flight, at altitude the sound is comparable to an electric toothbrush or a window fan on low and typically can’t be heard indoors.

The drone is a hexacopter design with six rotors, built for vertical take-off before transitioning to horizontal flight.

How much does Amazon drone delivery cost?

Currently in the UK, Prime Air delivery is included as part of an Amazon Prime membership with no additional delivery fee for members. As we extend the service to broader areas we will evaluate delivery fees consistent with other Amazon premium speed services.

Next, find out how Amazon is using Japan’s iconic Shinkansen bullet trains to deliver packages.

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