What will probably be wish to stay within the UK’s first ‘Amazon drone city’ the place parcels can be dropped off by air after metropolis in Texas was stricken by noise

It is celebrated for its rich engineering heritage and widely known as the birthplace of the modern railway. But the sleepy English market town of Darlington, County Durham, is braced for an influx of drone deliveries that residents fear could ‘cripple’ the area and put local shops out of business.

Branded a ‘gimmick’ by locals, the scheme, the first of its kind in the UK, will see Amazon parcels dropped off by air. 

But residents fear they will be bombarded by hordes of noisy vehicles zooming through the sky – and experts say those fears are not unfounded.

‘The typical drone is about 80 decibels which is not insignificant,’ said Naus. ‘When the drones are low, during take-off or landing that does make it louder.

‘The places which are worst affected will be houses close to the distribution centre, where the drones are still flying low to the ground.

‘If there are any areas which have a large quantity of deliveries that could make the noise worse

‘It is a volume game, it will come down to how many are flying. The range is quite small. If you think about how many delivery vans drive around, these drones will only take one at a time.

‘I’m guessing a van would make 200 deliveries, so replacing one van would be a lot of drones and a lot of noise.’

Some residents also expressed concerns that the aerial vehicles, worth thousands of pounds each, could be targeted by yobs keen to ‘use them for a coffee table’ at home.

Among them was Pixie Armstrong, a 30-year-old nail technician.

‘I think Amazon are too keen with this idea, said Armstrong. ‘It might end up costing them more than it would to just use delivery drivers.

‘Given half a chance, kids will want to try and get their hands on a drone.

‘I think someone will be using a drone for a coffee table after the first week.

‘But if the service is a success, it could cripple Darlington. It’s a novelty so people will want to test it out, and place orders.

‘Shops in the town could struggle because people will use them less.

‘People will order stuff on Amazon just so they can put the drones on social media.’

Pixie’s eight-year-old son Max added: ‘I hope they don’t knock the birds out of the sky.

‘They could also knock people’s heads. But I really like robots so it could be cool.’

The scheme may also be doomed to the fate of one Texas city where issues over noise caused by the constant deliveries became so prevalent that the mayor was forced to write a letter of complaint to Amazon. 

The drones were introduced to the city of College Station in Texas in 2023.

In 2024, plans by Amazon to expand the drone delivery service were met with objection over noise concerns, with the city’s mayor John Nicholls writing a letter to the company.

Mr Nicholls wrote: ‘Residents in neighborhoods adjacent to Amazon Prime Air’s facility have expressed concern to the City Council regarding drone noise levels, particularly during take-off and landing, as well as in some delivery operations.’

He said an increase in the number of drones would only make the noise levels worse.

‘Due to the level of concern from residents, the city would ask to delay the increase in service levels relating to the number of deliveries, as well as the expanded operation days and hours, until additional noise mitigation efforts are implemented by Amazon Prime Air,’ he wrote.

He did acknowledge that the updated MK30 drone was 40 per cent quieter than its predecessor, which he hoped would help with noise mitigation efforts.

However, now it is the MK30 drones that have been suspended following crashes of two of its models during tests in rain, Bloomberg reported.

In December 2024, two of the MK30 drones crashed at a test facility in Oregon due to heavy rain causing one of them to catch fire on impact.

Amazon said the MK30 has since been updated so it can cope with rain, which will be essential for flying in British weather.

Andrew Spence, who works in architecture, said: ‘I don’t think the drone service will work.

‘It’s only going to be for small packages. Do we really need drones flying around everywhere for that?

‘Its not going to be practical and I think it is just a gimmick.

‘I used to shop on Amazon a lot but I try to come to the high street more often now.’

The 36-year-old added: ‘Amazon likes gimmicks so they will do it here and they will say it’s great.

‘Instead of dropping a pair of nail clippers to someone’s house, why can’t the customers go to a pick-up spot instead?

‘Drones aren’t going to be able to put the package in a black box if the person isn’t home.

‘There are also the pylons and other things to think about.’

Other, more excited locals, have said they’re keen to get a glimpse of ‘the future’ in action, with those living within a seven-and-a-half mile radius of the company’s warehouse on the outskirts of the town eligible for the pilot.

However, they may have to wait a while for it to come to fruition, with experts warning about concerns over privacy and safety, with the drones potentially being launched a stone’s throw away from Teesside Airport.

The ‘army of drones’ will be equipped with cameras to help operators see where they are going, but this could cause them to view people’s homes and back gardens, one expert suggested.

Amazon will need permission from the local council and the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) before the service – named Air Prime – can go live, and the retail giant’s plans for aerial domination have already spent years trying to get off the ground.

The Civil Aviation Authority has still to come up with rules on how commercial drones can safely be used for deliveries.

A former Amazon worker, who didn’t want to be named, said: ‘We have to move with the times.

‘I worked there before Christmas, and I knew this was coming. I think it will actually promote more jobs, because drones can only go so far.

‘There will be a weight capacity so they will only be able to take the small stuff. Delivery drivers will still be needed but they just might have to go further afield.

‘If you have 20 packages to do on the same estate you will still need a driver.

‘It will make everything more streamlined as a result. If drones are the future then we have to move with it.’

Caravan worker Andrew Pickavance, 60, said: ‘We won’t really know if it’s going to work until it starts. 

‘But I am in favour of it if they are trying something new. It should mean progress for Darlington. It’s good that it’s the first place to try it.

‘The drones shouldn’t be too noisy either. It should only be a little buzzing noise. It’s not as if it’s a V12 Ferrari or an Airbus 380 coming past.’

Social worker Deborah Cross often has Amazon parcels delivered to her home when her daughter visits from Leeds.

The 63-year-old said: ‘I heard about the news but I’m not worried about it.

‘Having the drones up above the house won’t affect us. I think we should definitely move with the times.

‘I understand people worrying if a drone was to drop something heavy on their car or house but I can’t see that happening.

‘It’s also good for Darlington that this has been chosen as the first town. I am all for it.’ 

Mr Naus said he believes awaiting a decision by the CAA could mean the rollout is more than a year away.

He said: ‘I am fascinated to see how quickly Amazon can get approval. The CAA tends to take its decisions very carefully. They will move at a speed they are comfortable with.

‘I would be surprised if there is a decision this year.’

Mr Naus also raised concerns about the location of the delivery centre where the drones would be launched from.

The site on Morton Park Way on the outskirts of the town is just metres away from a red zone surrounding Teeside International Airport, which prevents aircraft including drones flying in the area.

He added: ‘The Darlington site is on the eastern side of the town, the red zone is on the other side of the road.

‘If there is wind, could that create a problem or a risk. 

‘The CAA will have to decide whether that is safe.’

Mr Naus also believes there could be an ‘impact on privacy’.  

‘If Amazon are delivering hundreds of parcels, are you going to have an army of drones going over people’s houses with cameras?

‘I’m not sure whether people would consent to that.’ 

Serhat Kyuchuk-Pakyuz, former Amazon worker and CEO and co-founder of Ride Logics, said the technology is ‘not the future of deliveries’.

He said: ‘I am certain it is not the future, I think drones work in only very niche cases.

‘In rural areas where people need something in 20 minutes, things that are really time critical like pharmaceuticals, medical supply drops and disaster relief drones are absolutely the best method. 

‘When we are talking about day-to-day deliveries, I think the future will still be vans or bikes with delivery drivers to be honest.

‘For many, many years, companies focused on the need to be faster, but when you actually dig into the to the shopper data most people are happy with next day deliveries for the bulk of their products. 

‘So going way faster than that I think is a bit too niche.

‘Typically, drones can only make a handful of deliveries in one trip. It may be able to deliver four or five parcels and then it has to go back to the fulfilment centre, whereas a delivery driver could do maybe 300 packages in one route. 

‘Drones buzzing over neighbourhoods could create noise disturbances, especially in quiet residential areas. If multiple drones operate at once (which theoretically, they would need to because they can’t carry much), it might become an ongoing nuisance.’

Lars Erik Matsson Fagernæs is the co-founder and CEO of Aviant, is one of two companies in Europe certified to do drone deliveries.

He said: ‘This is 100 per cent the future of delivery, there is a reason Amazon invested so much money into this venture.

‘I don’t think drones can solve every problem but they can speed up deliveries. If a customers wants or needs something in 20 minutes, a drone can do that.

‘There are three main reasons to use drones; the environment, delivery time and cost.

‘The big question in the UK is what the public perception will be. In Texas it made so much noise that people really complained and they stopped the trial because it made too much noise and people got too angry.

‘Some of the drones also drop the items from a height of about ten metres. How does that work for a lot of deliveries? If it is eggs or hardware that would be a problem.’

A spokesperson for Amazon said: ‘Based on our current operations in US, we are confident that our drone will meet the required local noise standards. 

‘At Prime Air we are always innovating and our new drone, which would operate in Darlington, will produce a lower noise level than our current model in operation.

‘Amazon works closely with all stakeholders to ensure our operational noise levels adhere to local noise ordinances and remain below community noise significance thresholds.

‘Teesside International Airport’s senior management and air traffic team have worked closely with Amazon over the past 18 months to provide guidance and support and has been instrumental in bringing this UK-first project to the region.

‘Amazon has also worked closely with the Civil Aviation Authority on the development of this project and developing the regulatory framework to make commercial drone delivery a reality in the UK.

‘Given this work carried out with Amazon, there will be no impact on airport operations.’

On the question of privacy, the spokesperson said the drones do not capture imagery from underneath the drone.

They added: ‘Our drone does not capture imagery from underneath when it is flying to its delivery destination and back. 

‘It is looking forward to ensure safe flight. During the delivery phase, the drone descends in the customer backyard and hovers, looking down to ensure the delivery area is clear of obstacles and the delivery can made safely. 

‘The cameras and sensors on the drones are operational to see what’s around them to aid in flight navigation and safety. 

‘They are not built and nor is there company intent to be surveillance drones. 

‘They will store critical mission data to improve our systems and flight planning.

‘These are not surveillance drones.’