A councillor has welcomed Amazon's plans for a town to become the first in the UK to offer deliveries by drone. Darlington Borough Council's deputy leader Chris McEwan said there was a "long journey to travel" but described proposals as "quite interesting and exciting".

The e-commerce and technology company has begun applying for permits to fly delivery drones in Darlington, England.

AMAZON drone deliveries are set for take off in the UK for the first time. The tech giant has been using them in the US since 2022 and had said in 2023 they would be taking to the air here by the

Once Amazon has approval, it will begin hiring team members to launch drone deliveries out of its Darlington fulfillment center. Amazon didn’t share any details about when Prime

The US tech giant wants to roll out its Prime Air service from the Teesside town of Darlington, subject to planning permission and clearance for flights.

The US tech giant said it was now lodging planning applications with the local authority and was seeking clearance from the Civil Aviation Authority for the drone-based delivery service, which is know

The tech giant has lodged planning applications for the UK's first drone based delivery service. | ITV News Tyne Tees

Amazon has been scouting for appropriate launch sites in the UK for months and said it had chosen Darlington, which has a population of just over 100,000, after considering factors such as airspace requirements, local weather and its existing warehouse operations. Darlington is five miles from the nearest airport.

Test drone deliveries in America saw Amazon deliver free items, such as cans of soup, to driveways. Amazon has chosen Darlington as the first location in the UK to see parcels delivered by drones. It says it will now start the planning process for initial flights from its fulfilment centre on the outskirts of the town.

Amazon announced Monday it has picked the north England town of Darlington as the first site for its planned U.K. drone delivery expansion. Amazon was expected to expand Prime Air to the U.K. and Italy in 2024.

Amazon packages could soon be delivered to your door in under an hour, as the retail giant moves one step closer to launching deliveries by drone in the UK. The company has chosen its warehouse in Darlington as the proposed site from which to launch the service.