UK's 165-mile long 'drone superhighway' will open between June and July.

 

A drone superhighway may sound more like a science-fiction blockbuster than the Midlands, but it will become a reality this summer.

The world's first drone superhighway will open in the United Kingdom between June and early July, allowing pilotless drones to perform high-speed deliveries around the country.


The 165-mile Skyway network, developed by drone software developer Altitude Angel, will connect Coventry in the Midlands with Milton Keynes in the Southeast.
However, critics have cautioned that the drone highway 'inevitably poses a risk' to the privacy and safety of Britons living in its flight path.

Speaking to storyful.site, Chris Cole, head of campaign group Drone Wars, said: "While the drone industry is ecstatic about this, for people who end up living under the drones, it may well end up being extremely annoying and intrusive."

Once completed, the drone superhighway will have 30 'Arrow Towers' that can control drones from the ground.

These towers will form a virtual highway, allowing drones to navigate securely without the need for a human pilot.

Stephen Farmer, Altitude Angel's head of corporate communications, told storyful.site that you need to see a drone and be within 500m to fly it.

Each ground tower serves as a 'human spotter', allowing drones to fly far beyond the sight of any human pilot.

Drones are 'passed' up the chain of the superhighway, with each tower having a range of 2.5 miles (4 km), allowing them to fly enormous distances.

Each ground tower is outfitted with strong sensors that create a virtual map of the entire airspace.

By connecting with drones in the air, towers can coordinate traffic so that drones avoid each other and any obstructions that may arise. 

The motorway was built as part of a £273 million government investment in the aircraft industry and a £5 million investment by BT. 

Currently, 15 of the 30 towers have been constructed, spanning an area of 80-90 miles.

Altitude Angel had initially proposed that the superhighway be extended south to Southampton and west to Bentwaters.

However, the corporation has recently acknowledged that these extensions will not be built because to difficulties in locating suitable sites for new towers.

Mr Farmer explained: 'We've been dealing with a lot of private individuals, whether they're sports groups or farms, and it's been difficult to get the appropriate infrastructure.

'People were hesitant to place gear in fields, so there was a lot of negotiating with landowners, which took longer than we expected.'

A Reading to Cambridge segment has also been scrapped, as Altitude Angel focuses on finishing the main body of the motorway.

Mr Farmer states that Altitude Angle is currently awaiting certification from the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) to begin flying drones within the network, which is expected in 'June or very early July'.

While Altitude Angel claims that the Superhighway will boost businesses and save lives by facilitating medical deliveries, the idea is not without criticism.

Mr Cole claims that the proposal threatens public safety and privacy.

'Once drones are allowed to fly freely in UK skies, there is likely to be little public gain in comparison to the significant impact on quality of life for individuals who must live with drones above their heads,' he told storyful.site

Critics of drone highways are mostly worried with three issues: collisions, noise, and privacy.

Anyone who has lived under a flight path understands how disruptive air traffic noise can be.

However, Altitude Angel maintains that fixed-wing drones, which will make up the majority of the superhighway's users, are nearly silent.

And, at a height of 400 feet, the developer argues that anyone on the ground will have a difficult time seeing or hearing drones overhead.

It is also worth noting that Altitude Angel predicts that no more than 10 drones would use the 165 miles of airspace per day when the highway first opens.

 However, Mr Cole is concerned that flying drones outside the visible line of sight offers a unique safety risk.

He states, "The bedrock of aviation safety - upon which all other safety measures are built - is having a pilot be able to look out of the cockpit window and take avoidance measures if necessary."

Meanwhile, Altitude Angel denies these assertions, insisting that the CAA's approval of the route is reliant on the system being 'better than a human spotter'.

When it comes to privacy, there are concerns that opening up a superhighway may allow commercial and privately owned drones to fly over private land.

Mr Cole stated: "While there may be strict protocols for this trial, surveillance is one of the primary missions that drones are tasked with."

'If drones are given free reign over our skies, massive numbers of drones will be deployed for a variety of surveillance purposes, inevitably infringing on the public's privacy.'

Meanwhile, Altitude Angel downplays the highway's potential impact on privacy.

Its fundamental reason is that the majority of drones flying over the highway will lack cameras and other sensors, relying solely on ground towers for guidance.

However, it does not state that cameras will not be allowed on the highway.

Remote surveying for construction and ecological projects is one of the highway's claimed use cases.

Finally, Altitude Angel states that while private individuals in the flight path retain their legal right to privacy, they must take action themselves if they perceive a problem.

'There's no reason why somebody would want to see into anyone's home or backyard,' Mr Farmer said.

'If a drone operator violates someone's privacy, that is an issue for the police, and we would like to help with that [investigation].'

Sophie O'Sullivan, Head of Future Safety and Innovation at the UK Civil Aviation Authority, told storyful.site: "We continue to work with Altitude Angel on its proposals for a "drone superhighway"."

"There are many stages involved in developing and bringing proposals like those from Altitude Angel to market, and we are dedicated to assisting the company throughout this phase in the same manner that we assist a variety of operators so that all new technologies are reliable, secure, and safe for the public and users of airspace."