Skyports’ Scottish school meal delivery tapped for national award

A trial program overseen by the UK’s Skyports Drone Services in Scotland is in the running for a national award for its efforts in pioneering UAV transport of meals to remote Highland schools.

Launched last June, the Skyports-assisted test project has been using drones to shuttle lunches from the town of Orban to the Lochnell Primary School about 1.5 kilometers north. Though still in its early evaluation stages, the scheme introduced by the local Argyll and Bute Council is the first attempt in the UK to supply meals for students in remote schools using UAVs.

If successful, the program could be broadened to other localities in Scotland’s Highlands and Hebrides islands.

Read more: Skyports tests drone deliveries of meals to schools in Scotland

The governing Argyll and Bute Council has been exploring ways to use UAVs to overcome recurring challenges in serving its rural and island communities. Like several other administrations…