Amazon deliveries by drone

Amazon has announced that later this year it will begin delivering parcels to its customers by drone for the first time - pending final regulatory approval. This announcement has been long anticipated. In 2013, Jeff Bezos promised drone delivery within five year. Then in 2019, they told customers “within months.”

In a blog post, Amazon wrote: “The promise of drone delivery has often felt like science fiction…[but] later this year, Amazon customers living in Lockeford, California, will become among the first to receive Prime Air deliveries.”

They plan to roll out Prime Air services more widely after getting feedback from Lockeford, which has a population of roughly 4,000 people. Amazon said that the drones will be programmed to drop packages into the backyards of shoppers in Lockeford. The goal is to complete deliveries in under an hour, according to Amazon.

The drones will fly “beyond-line-of-sight,” so they will not have to be controlled by a visual observer. They will use sensors to avoid other aircrafts and obstacles instead. While some have safety concerns about the drones, the retailer has said that it is in compliance with “all applicable regulations,” and it has been tested “rigorously.”

Image from BBC