Amazon is "on the precipice" of gaining approval to expand its drone delivery service to the whole of Darlington as it looks to roll out the service in the UK.
The US tech giant started a "limited" number of flights in February, allowing customers within a 7.5-mile radius of its County Durham site to have certain items delivered by drone.
Amazon announced last January that Darlington would be its test centre in the UK, marking the first time Prime Air had expanded outside the USA.
After more than 500 flights and deliveries, the firm said it is now seeking approval from the Civil Aviation Authority to cover the whole town.
David Carbon, vice-president of Prime Air, said Amazon was expecting to get permission "very soon", with the ultimate aim of expanding the service to the whole of the UK.
Eligible customers in Darlington are currently able to receive their items within two hours, as long as the package weighs less than 5lb.
Staff at the site said their best delivery time so far is 39 minutes.
During a visit, Mr Carbon told the Press Association the advantages of a drone over a van are "really simple".
He said: "If you need something in 60 minutes or less – and our average click to delivery time, closing in on a million deliveries in the US, is 34 minutes.
"If you're going to cobble a bunch of stuff together, it's hard to get the timing right to get it all in the right place.
"So if you're doing a single pointed delivery, it's much easier to go from point to point faster.
"The other advantage is it keeps people off the road. It takes congestion away from the roads, which means you're not adding to congestion and traffic and the risk that comes with being on the road and all that sort of stuff, and it's environmentally sustainable.
"So there's lots of advantages that come with the drone, but most importantly for our customers, we've never had a customer say, 'send my package slower'.
"Speed is always critical."
As part of the limited launch in Darlington, Prime Air is available to customers with a garden, yard, or driveway for items that weigh less than 5lb and fit into a large shoebox.
Mr Carbon said the size and weight limitations made about 68% of items that people order eligible for drone delivery.
During checkout, customers see a satellite map of their property showing options for "delivery zones", pre-identified using Amazon's digital mapping and AI systems.
The customer can then select one of these drop-off zones and is reminded to keep the area clear.
In the UK, Prime Air is currently included as part of an Amazon Prime membership with no additional delivery fee, but this will be evaluated as the service expands.
Mr Carbon said the firm was "working through those details" but it would "not be much of an extra cost".
