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Would you get a skrik if you saw a drone touch down on your lawn with your online orders? I know my dog would probably go into ‘perimeter breach’ mode and turn the robot into scrap metal in about 2.5 seconds (bless her heart), but things are looking hopeful for UK citizens living in remote areas who struggle to receive packages.

Royal Mail will be piloting a drone delivery project over the next three months that could see mail delivery revolutionised.

We’ve seen drones continuously make headlines over the past couple years, from the US using the flying robots to spot UFOs, to average citizens capturing extreme footage. Whether or not you’re a fan of the flying metal critters, it seems like a no-brainer that services such as postal deliveries should be hopping onto this new tech trend.

We can say with relief that Royal Mail will be utilising drones in a way that means my excitable doggo would not even get the chance to pounce on a drone, even if she wanted to.

The plan is to send postal packages from the UK’s Kirkwall delivery office to Stromness to Graemsay and Hoy via drone flight. From there, postal workers will embark on their delivery routes as usual.

In a big move towards efficiency for the area’s postal service, Alistair Carmichael, the MP for Orkney and Shetland, explained that it’s the remote parts of the UK who will benefit in a big way:

“Anything that helps to maintain the universal service, especially in areas of the isles which are more difficult to reach, is something that we should give a chance to support … Royal Mail remains a critical part of keeping the isles connected –- and local knowledge and care are vital to that network.”

Alex Brown, director of Skyports Drone Services, who is involved in the technical side of getting the postal drones up and running, added the new pilot project will not only mean upping efficiency, but is also an exciting new test of how we can reduce carbon emissions with new clean(er) tech.

As more and more countries look to flying bots to streamline services, let’s keep our fingers crossed that the notoriously poorly-executed SA postal service is taking notes.

[source:thecitizen]