A consortium including AGS Airports and NHS Scotland has acquired over £10 million ($12 million) in funding to deliver the UK’s first medical distribution network using drones. The CAELUS consortium is in the process of establishing a national drone delivery network for medical supplies across Scotland.

Medical drone network funding

CAELUS (Care & Equity – Healthcare Logistics UAS Scotland) has successfully acquired over £10 million ($12 million) in funding from the Future Flight Challenge at UK Research and Innovation (UKRI).

CAELUS, which consists of 16 partners, including AGS Airports, NHS Scotland, the University of Strathclyde and National Air Traffic Services (NATS), is developing a national drone network for medical distribution in Scotland.

Fiona Smith, AGS Airports Group Head of Aerodrome Strategy and CAELUS Project Director, said,

"The CAELUS project is set to revolutionize the way in which healthcare services are delivered in Scotland. A drone network can ensure critical medical supplies can be delivered more efficiently, it can reduce waiting times for test results and, more importantly, it can provide equity of care between urban and remote rural communities."

Scotland is home to many remote communities that have trouble receiving medical supplies through conventional delivery methods. The drone distribution network aims to "transport essential medicines, bloods and other medical supplies throughout Scotland, including to remote communities."

Public Health Minister Maree Todd said,

"This innovative project will help position Scotland at the forefront of drone technologies to deliver essential healthcare supplies to people more quickly and provide equity of care between urban and remote rural communities."

Second round of funding

Today's announcement is the latest funding from the Future Flight Challenge, the UKRI-led investment program pumping £125 million ($149 million) into the next wave of aviation tech.

CAELUS received backing to the tune of £1.5 million ($1.79 million) in January 2020. The project has designed drone landing stations for NHS sites across Scotland and also developed a digital-twin virtual model of the drone network.

Fiona Smith added,

"The second round of funding from UKRI will allow our consortium to undertake live flights and begin to deploy the physical infrastructure needed to support the drones across Scotland. This will involve building prototype landing bases as well as digital and communication infrastructure. We will also work with local communities to ensure they understand why and how the drones will be used."

Live flight trials will be operated by Skyports, one of the members of CAELUS. Skyports played a key role in early trial flights through 2020 and 2021, with over 12,000 flight hours logged.

Alex Brown, Director of Skyports Drone Services, said,

"The benefits case for drone operations in Scotland is clear, particularly across the public health sector. We’ve already demonstrated the positive impact drone interventions can have on individuals and communities, and we’re eager to kick off the next round of flight trials with the view to soon be facilitating permanent drone deliveries to connect people to these essential supplies – wherever they are."

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About CAELUS

The CAELUS consortium consists of AGS Airports Limited, NHS Scotland, NATS, University of Strathclyde, Connected Places Catapult, ANRA Technologies UK, Atkins, Arup, Cellnex UK, Commonplace Digital, DGP Intelsius, Dronamics, Plane Finder, Skyports, The Drone Office, and Trax International.

The initiative is funded by the government-backed UK Research and Innovation, which invests over £7 billion a year into various research and innovation projects.

Gary Cutts, Future Flight Challenge Director at UK Research and Innovation, said,

"With the potential to quickly deliver medicines, bloods and other medical supplies on demand, the CAELUS project laid the groundwork for revolutionizing health care access across Scotland."

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