An NHS plan to fly drones over popular London hotspots has been branded ‘crazy’ by worried locals who are scared the aircraft may crash.
The health service are looking to use the drones to deliver urgent blood samples between 12 hospitals across London after a six-month trial period at Guy’s and St Thomas’ hospitals.
The proposals could see the aircraft range as far as Wimbledon in the city’s south west, to Chadwell Heath in the east, with the aim of cutting costs and reducing delays in delivering the vital samples by beating busy road congestion.
Apian, the logistics company who would deploy the drones and oversee the flights, say they have provided more than 6,000 urgent supplies since their trial period started last November.
The company’s website says this has shown ‘the capability to make faster, more reliable and more sustainable deliveries than traditional land-based modes of transport’.
They add that their trialled deliveries to the rooftops of Guy’s and St Thomas’ would have taken more than 30 minutes by road, but that they have been able to deliver them in just two minutes by drone.
But as the NHS look to expand the services across the city, locals in some of the affected areas are divided at the prospect of having the drones buzz in the overhead airspace.
While some praised it as a ‘clever idea’, others claimed it could potentially cause harmful accidents.
Natasha McCluney, 59, who works as a courier across Kensington, said: ‘I really can’t see that working. It all feels a bit too sci-fi to me.
‘It doesn’t feel like that’s been trialled enough – and I can just imagine the drones crashing. I can’t imagine the people living here would love things flying over their heads all day either.
‘If it helps with the speed of those tests I’m all for progress – but blood samples feel like a really important thing to be transporting. So it makes me a bit nervous.’
Renee Dawkins, 23, who works near High Street Kensington, said ‘it feels strange to not have something as important as blood samples in human hands’.
She added: ‘That being said, if it’s more efficient, it makes sense to go for it. And I can imagine it would be a good cost-cutting measure if you don’t have to employ lots of drivers to transport samples.
‘But I imagine it might be disruptive. Will they have cameras? Will they be flying over people’s houses? That’s a concern.’
The safety of drone blood transportation was tested last year when NHS Blood and Transplant (NHSBT) used Apian aircrafts to send 10 blood packs from Northumbria Hospital to Alnwick Infirmary and back again.
Five were delivered by drone while the other five were by transported road, and the researchers concluded that using the aircraft did not influence the blood’s quality or how long it lasted.
NHSBT Chief Medical Officer, Dr Gail Miflin, said the results were ‘very promising’ after the drone delivered the packs on the 42-mile journey in 61 minutes, while the vehicle on road took 68 minutes.
On top of the existing link between Guy’s and St Thomas’, the new plans would see drone pathways link Charing Cross Hospital, Great Ormond Street Hospital, University College Hospital and the Royal Free Hospital, if approved.
Queen Mary’s Hospital, St George’s Hospital and the Nelson Health Centre would also be linked south of the River Thames.
And a third zone in east London would link King George Hospital, Queen’s Hospital and Barking Hospital.
This means the drones could fly over places like Kensington Palace, Hyde Park and Oxford Circus.
Kensington local Ben Vitalis, 26, said the strategy was a good way to ‘modernise’ health services and speed up transportation – but thought that issues such as the unpredictable British weather had been overlooked.
Mr Vitalis said: ‘I’m surprised by this being part of the flight path as it is a relatively residential area.
‘I appreciate that the strategy could help modernise things and improve the running of services – especially in terms of beating congestion when it’s vans and cars transporting samples.
‘But I also foresee a lot of potential problems. Who will be in charge of the drones? How skilled are these drivers?
‘And what about the weather? Will the drones manage in the rain or the fog? What about visibility? British weather isn’t known for being the most reliable.’
Apian’s website says the drones can fly in bad weather ‘up to a point’, adding that they have been used for deliveries in the mixed climates such as , Finland and Ireland.
It adds: ‘If the weather is so extreme that flights are not possible, the deliveries will be made via existing ground-transport options.’
Barry Gerber, 55, lives near Hyde Park and praised the idea, saying: ‘I think that’s a good idea. I have no problem with that. Especially if it’s going to help people be treated quicker.
‘As long as they’re not flying too low I can’t foresee them being that disruptive. And I imagine if they’re transporting medical supplies, these drones will be larger, and so they’ll be higher up.
‘As long as drones aren’t being used to spy on people – I have no issue.’
Apian say any cameras on the drones are used for the delivery of packages, not for taking any photographs.
They say: ‘[The drones are] equipped with low-resolution, black-and-white camera sensors used primarily to assist with navigation and to help ensure the safety and reliability of our operations.
‘There is no live feed of images available to anyone – including the pilots overseeing flights.’
Virginia O’Connor, 70, who used to live in the UK but now lives in the US, was also positive about the plans on her visit back to London.
She said: ‘I think that sounds like a really clever idea. London is so congested – so that will really help with speed of transport.
‘It’s an effective way to use that technology. I don’t think they’re doing anything like that in the States.’
Fereshteh Guillon, who lives across from Holland Park, feared any noise from the drones would be ‘disruptive’.
She said: ‘Already, when I’m sitting in my conservatory, it’s really noisy – with planes flying over every few minutes. Now I’m going to have to deal with drones as well?
‘I don’t mind if it’s going to help the hospitals – but they should have soundproof drones. Surely that’s possible. It also depends on the time of day. If it’s at night that will be very disruptive.’
Ms Guillon was also upset that locals who live along the flight paths had not been warned about the plans.
She said: ‘Why were there no consultations for this? They didn’t ask any of us in the neighbourhood. I didn’t receive any letters. They should inform people of these plans before they go ahead with them.’
Apian told that the plans are in ‘early stages’ and are being developed in co-ordination with the Civil Aviation Authority.
They also said there will be an opportunity for local stakeholders, including residents, councils and businesses to have their say.
A spokesperson added: ‘As reported previously, we are excited to build on our successful work in London.
‘Safety is our top priority. Apian works with industry-leading drone operators who have safely completed millions of deliveries worldwide. Every flight is monitored by a qualified pilot and backed by multiple layers of redundancy. This approach is helping us transform healthcare delivery through autonomous logistics technology.’
has approached NHS England for comment.
NHS England announced their first trial of the delivery service in July 2022, where they tested Apian drone transportation of chemotherapy drugs.
These were flown from Portsmouth to a hospital on the Isle of Wight in 30 minutes, down from the four hours it normally takes by conventional transport.
Chief Executive of NHS England, Amanda Pritchard, announced the pilot as the health service marked its 74th birthday.
She said moving to drone technology would also be good for the environment by cutting carbon emissions from cars, ferries and planes.
Boots Pharmacy then followed suit, announcing that it would be the first community pharmacy in the UK to deliver prescription medicines by an Apian drone.
The pharmacy’s first drone flew from the British Army’s Baker Barracks on Thorney Island and arrived at St Mary’s Hospital in Newport on the Isle of Wight on July 4, 2022.