An Amazon Prime Air drone has crashed into a local resident’s garden while carrying out a delivery.
Nobody was hurt in the incident, which occurred in Beaumont Hill, Darlington, County Durham, on Wednesday, and has prompted parallel investigations by both Amazon and the Air Accidents Investigation Branch.
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Amazon’s early findings point to a collision with something protruding above the roof of a passing vehicle.
A company spokesman said: “Our initial assessment is that an object extending above the roof of a moving vehicle inadvertently came into contact with a Prime Air drone during delivery.”
They added: “Following the contact, the drone responded as designed and came safely to the ground.”
The AAIB confirmed it had begun making inquiries into the accident.
Local resident John Peacock, whose home is in the neighbourhood in the north of the town, told Chronicle Live he was woken by a loud noise early on Wednesday morning and initially assumed his neighbours were having building work done.
When he went outside to investigate, he found the drone on the ground with its motors and propellers still spinning, “destroying themselves”.
He said: “It wasn’t huge but it’s a substantial-sized body with a lot of energy, when the thing landed, it was very, very powerful.
“I don’t think they’re designed for an urban or semi-rural environment, I’m not in favour of them at all.”
Journalists who visited the scene reported that physical damage was minimal, largely limited to a small privet hedge.
Darlington is the only location outside the United States where Amazon operates its drone delivery service.
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The trial, which received Civil Aviation Authority approval to run until the end of 2026, launched on May 7 this year.
The service uses Amazon’s MK30 drone, which has been cleared by the CAA to fly beyond visual line of sight.
Packages weighing under 5lb are dispatched from a local fulfilment centre at Symmetry Park, reaching customers within a 7.5-mile radius in just under two hours.
Everyday products such as beauty items, bin liners and cables are among the goods delivered. Equivalent services in the US can complete drop-offs in approximately 36 minutes.
The crash has vindicated concerns raised by Darlington residents shortly after the service began operating.
Mary Warner, 56, previously told the Mirror: “They could run out of battery power due to human error and land on someone’s head, the worst case scenario being a baby. The noise would be quite unnerving.”
Marjorie Dunn, who used the service twice, described it enthusiastically, saying: “There was a loud buzzing and the drone appeared over outlet rooftop and hovered over the lawn before releasing the parcel.”
Amazon has maintained that its drones have completed hundreds of thousands of deliveries worldwide with “very few mishaps”.
The company said it would not “cut corners” and that Prime Air systems are built with multiple safety features.
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