Partnership to send drones across Highlands for cargo delivery

An MoU will explore the deployment of drones for cargo delivery across some of the most remote regions.

Windracers, a drone engineering and manufacturing company, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Highlands and Islands Transport Partnership (HITRANS) where it will explore accelerating the use of air cargo drone operations in some of the most remote regions in the UK.

Supported by Innovate UK, its Sustainable Aviation Test Environment (SATE) programme brought Windracers and HITRANS together through a series of funded operations to demonstrate how UAS cargo can solve transport challenges in remote regions.

As part of the partnership, Windracers will work closely with HITRANS to identify cases where unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) can deliver a wide range of benefits to businesses and communities.

The MoU represents the next step in their partnership from programme-led collaboration to a long-term, locally led operational model and a shared focus on how autonomous aviation can respond to the specific transport needs of remote and rural regions.

Ranald Robertson, Partnership Director at HITRANS said: “These pioneering UAS projects could bring improvements for residents and visitors, as well as revolutionising logistics for businesses and healthcare by bypassing traditional transport bottlenecks.

“In future, it could help with the rapid delivery of medicines, significantly helping patients, and also assist high-value, time-sensitive industries such as seafood and aquaculture, where delays can drastically impact product quality and economic viability.”

The collaboration between HITRANS and Windracers supports the UK government’s Future Flight programme and the Civil Aviation Authority’s Airspace Modernisation Strategy.