Drones fly between University Hospital Crosshouse and Arran
Project CAELUS is continuing to break new ground for Scotland with drones flying laboratory samples across the Firth of Clyde for the first time.
Live flying took place between University Hospital Crosshouse in Kilmarnock to the Arran War Memorial on the Isle of Arran.
AGS Airports led the three-week trial in collaboration with 15 other consortium partners.
As the lead health board, NHS Grampian has driven the “once for Scotland” approach across the NHS to understand the role this new logistics technology could play in mitigating challenges in access to healthcare in remote and rural areas.
Work continues throughout the project using drones to rapidly transport medical supplies and diagnostic samples between mainland hospitals and remote or rural areas.
Fiona Smith, Project Director for CAELUS, said:
“Project CAELUS continues to work hard and be at the cutting edge of innovation.
“Our goal is to build a national drone network that can transport essential medicines, blood, and other medical supplies efficiently, particularly for Scotland's rural and island communities.
“This technology could provide quicker diagnostic results and treatment decisions, ultimately improving patient care across the country.”
This innovation can reduce delivery times for critical healthcare materials from several hours to just 30 minutes.
The trial aims to address logistical challenges faced by remote communities such as those on the Isle of Arran, where diagnostic samples must currently be transported by road and ferry to mainland hospitals, a process that can take up to five hours. Using drone can shorten this to 30-minutes.
During the trial, use-cases, designed by NHS Scotland were tested, including simulating blood products being transferred by drone to a patient in urgent need of a medical attention.
Karen Bell, National NHS Programme Lead for CAELUS said:
"NHS Grampian is pleased to be working with NHS Ayrshire and Arran and the West of Scotland Innovation Hub to further understand the benefits this technology could bring to healthcare delivery in island Communities."
Consultant Clinical Scientist Janet Hogg from the department of biochemistry in NHS Ayrshire & Arran added, “Exploring how drone technology could be usefully used as a way of delivering care to people who live in urban, remote, rural and island locations, is edging ever-closer to a reality.
“Here in Ayrshire and Arran we are well positioned to participate in this drone trial because of our vast geographical area of island and remote populations. This work has the potential to greatly enhance patient experience.”
Project CALEUS is working with 16 consortium partners to deliver what will be the first national drone network that can transport essential medicines, bloods and other medical supplies throughout Scotland including to remote communities.
CAELUS (Care & Equity – Healthcare Logistics UAS Scotland), is part funded by the UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) Future Flight Challenge.
In the latest live flight trials, tests were also carried out on how NHS staff in future would engage with the drone both physically and digitally.
Ajay Modha, Head of UK Business for ANRA Technologies UK said:
"CAELUS is revolutionising medical drone services, with ANRA Technologies playing a pivotal role in the trials. Through its cutting-edge Delivery Management System and advanced Unmanned Traffic Management (UTM) platform, ANRA seamlessly integrates customers, drone operators, and airspace managers, ensuring efficient, safe, and reliable operations for life-saving deliveries."
Anne-Lise Scaillierez, partner at The Drone Office:
"Public feedback from our engagement activities has shown overwhelming support for using drones in medical logistics across Scotland. We're thrilled by the significant progress achieved as part of Project CAELUS.”
Richard Ellis, NATS Services New Airspace Users Director, said:
“Project CAELUS continues to push the boundaries for drone operations in the UK and we are very proud to be playing our part. These latest flights have given us a chance to further validate our Master Control Room prototype, with the team receiving live flight telemetry for the first time. That’s another step towards achieving an integrated airspace for the UK, where potentially life changing applications like this can be the norm not the exception.”
Key Scenarios used in the flight trial:
Faster Diagnostic Testing: Patients on the Isle of Arran regularly need diagnostic tests that must be analysed on the mainland. The current 3.5–5-hour transit time could be reduced to 30 minutes, allowing quicker access to results and potentially lifesaving decisions.
Urgent Blood Product Deliveries: In remote locations where patients require emergency blood transfusions, drones could transport blood products within 30 minutes, compared to the current reliance on road and ferry services, which can take up to 5 hours.
Emergency Medical Supplies: Drones could deliver rare or urgent medicines to hospitals, particularly when traditional transport routes are unavailable or delayed. This will provide quicker access to critical treatments, saving lives in emergency situations.
The CAELUS consortium comprises:
AGS Airports
ANRA Technologies UK
Arup
AtkinsRéalis
Boldyn Networks UK
Commonplace Digital
Connected Places Catapult
DGP Intelsius
Dronamics
NATS
NHS Scotland
Plane Finder
Skyports Drone Services
The Drone Office
Trax International
University of Strathclyde