Funding awarded to further develop Welsh drone network

The Department for Transport and Innovate UK has awarded funding to aerospace innovators to further develop a drone network serving the Welsh Blood Service and Welsh Ambulance Service.

Project ‘Dragon’s Heart’ is receiving backing to develop drone solutions in Wales and generate data that could shape UK-wide regulatory policy.

The funding is part of a £4.4 million investment across 14 aviation projects to support areas including the NHS, emergency services and nature restoration in the UK.

Dragon’s Heart, which will run until 2026, will be led by Snowdonia Aerospace and include test flights at Snowdonia Aerospace Centre to develop an automated system using technology which enables drones to autonomously detect threats and reroute to safely avoid them mid-flight.

Jeremy Howitt, technical director of Snowdonia Aerospace Centre, said: “We’re delighted to build on the work we started in the first round of Future Flight funding, where we identified important commercial use-cases that would improve flexibility and connectivity for healthcare providers in Wales.

“Now, our project can refine the technical application of the concept, by integrating autonomous flight guidance software, a novel ground-based surveillance radar and medical delivery drone – that together promise safety and responsiveness for unmanned drones travelling through our network to make Wales ‘drone-ready’.”

The project will also see prototype vertiports unveiled at the Welsh Blood Service headquarters in Talbot Green, and at its northern stock-holding unit in Wrexham.

Following the conclusion of the project, a follow-on programme is expected to establish a full prototype drone service.

The Welsh NHS Medical Drone Delivery Network project was named as one of the winners of the UK Research and Innovation Future Flight Challenge in April 2024.

Innovate UK awarded £500,000 to support the Welsh project and four other projects in the health sector that are using drones for delivery of medicines and medical supplies.

Other partners collaborating on the project include Volant Autonomy, SLiNK-TECH, and Skyports Drone Services.

Bristol-based startup SLiNK-TECH will provide the automated launch and landing system that will oversee safe deployment of drones along the proposed medical delivery network.

John Goudie, chief executive at SLiNK-TECH, said: “We are really pleased to receive further support from Innovate UK through the latest round of Future Flight funding.

“This is a great endorsement of our technology and ongoing work in the drone and advanced air mobility sectors.

“This will enable SLiNK-TECH, in conjunction with our technology partners, to demonstrate PORTAL supporting medical supply chains.”

Within the consortium Skyports Drone Services will be operating the drones for the integration and demonstration activities, also providing its Westcott Drone Centre for testing and integration support.

In August 2024, a study run by NHS Blood and Transplant found that drones can be used as a safe mode of transport for delivering blood packs.