United Kingdom

Drone maker Autel Robotics has announced the launch of its official service center in the United Kingdom. The company, which is offering up to 50% off on its drones during this holiday season, has opened its UK drone repair store in partnership with local drone specialist Vantage UAV.

To prepare the United Kingdom for increased adoption of drone technology, the UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) has suggested several major changes to the current laws and regulations. Among the reforms proposed are the implementation of the Remote ID rule and making registration and remote pilot competency tests compulsory for sub-250-gram aircraft as well.

The UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) has developed new video guidance to explain to drone operators the risks of flying too close to emergency helicopters. The move comes after helicopter pilots reported more than a dozen cases where they felt a drone had become too close to their aircraft.

The UK Civil Aviation Authority has greenlit six trial projects that would help to make beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) drone flights and medical drone delivery an everyday reality in the country.

Drone Assist, a popular drone flight planning and approval app in the UK, has received a new update to give users a greater understanding of airspace restrictions and NOTAMs (Notice to Aviators).

UK-based Unified Traffic Management (UTM) technology provider Altitude Angel is expanding the scope of its recently launched drone flight Approval Services platform to include property and large land estates.

A 36-year-old drone pilot has been fined nearly £1,500 ($1,900) by a UK court. The man was found to have been flying his DJI Mavic 2 drone recklessly near an airport while trying to film a rock music festival.

The West Midlands region in England is trialing a new fully automated drone service to identify and resolve transport issues faster. Public body Transport for West Midlands (TfWM) has joined forces with drone company SkyBound Rescuer to ensure an eye in the sky in the areas that don’t have CCTV coverage.

Drones have become a part of the English Premier League football referee training program. With the new season now underway, referees and assistant referees are using video footage captured by DJI Mavic 3 Enterprise and the DJI Matrice 30 drones during practice matches to analyze their movements from above.

Drone flights around areas designated as “protected aerodromes” in the United Kingdom are restricted. If you want to fly a drone around London Heliport, London’s only licensed heliport, you need to submit an authorization request. Here’s how to do it…

Drone Assist, a popular flight planning tool in the United Kingdom, has received its most extensive update since the app was first launched in 2016. The new version begins rolling out today for both iOS and Android devices.

Worcestershire County in the UK has started trialing high-tech drones fitted with cameras to carry out bridge inspections. The county is home to around 1,500 bridge structures.

Drone maker XAG says the United Kingdom’s Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) has given operational authorization to its agricultural spraying aircraft P40 and V40. This is the first time drone spraying and spreading has been legalized for use on UK farms.

Nottinghamshire Police in the UK say 2022 was the busiest year to date for its drone operators, with more deployments, arrests, and interventions than ever before.

Police in an English county have seized over 100 cannabis plants from an illegal growing operation taking place in a residential area. This marijuana farm, which was first sniffed out by the police’s drone team, is said to be “one of the many” that have been disrupted this year courtesy of weed-hunting drones.

A custom-modified Ford Ranger is now available in the UK as the most advanced vehicle to support public safety drone operations. Among other things, the rugged 4×4 hosts a bespoke ready-to-fly drone mechanism and a built-in DJI drone detection unit.

Drones are being deployed in and around the Windsor town center to manage the crowds of thousands of mourners and well-wishers who have gathered outside Windsor Castle following the death of Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II.

Cargo drone manufacturer Windracers, which counts the British Royal Mail among its partners, has won its third round of funding from the Future Flight challenge at UK Research and Innovation (UKRI). The fresh capital will help Windracers to further middle-mile drone delivery trials and regulatory work with the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA).

Boots has become the first community pharmacy in the UK to transport prescription-only medicines using drones. The company is working with medical drone delivery startup Apian to facilitate a trial from Portsmouth to the Isle of Wight.

Britain’s health service, NHS, says its cancer patients will be the first in the world to benefit from chemotherapy delivered by drone as part of a new trial.

Conservationists say that a drone flying illegally and recklessly over a nature reserve in the United Kingdom has forced at least 150 migratory birds to flee in panic. At the same time, the drone “noticeably harassed” several sick sandwich terns who had most likely been infected with Avian Influenza (bird flu). The weakest of the terns soon perished thereafter.