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A typical high voltage fault impacts 100 properties.
Traditionally, engineers would walk underneath the whole length of the overhead electricity cables to try to find the fault.
However, drones can be flown above and images viewed on a laptop on site.
Phil Burke, an electrical engineer leading the trial at UK Power Networks, said: “Our teams face hedgerows, wire fences, ditches, woodland, fallen branches and uneven ground.
“Sometimes we’ll reach an obstacle like a fence and need to walk further away from the line to return to the same spot and continue the line patrol. “
He said walking one kilometre of line could take anything from 10 minutes to an hour, while drones could fly overhead far more quickly than workers who would need to climb a wooden pole to inspect equipment.
This reduces the risk of slips, trips and falls in rural areas, Mr Burke explained.
UK Power Networks estimate that flying drones will cut restoration times by an average of 30 minutes.
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