by DRONELIFE Staff Writer Ian J. McNab
International “everything store” Amazon recently announced that they had received FAA approval to expand their drone delivery operations, having new permissions to conduct BVLOS (Beyond Visual Line Of Sight) missions around the College Station, Texas area. T his new approval will allow Amazon to expand their operations in more crowded urban areas, as well as opening the door for future expansions into other, (yet to be publicly named), cities in the US. Currently, drone delivery is restricted to College Station and Lockeforde, California.
This approval is a result of the FAA’s rigorous review process, which included the submission of extensive engineering materials, including Amazon’s proprietary onboard “detect and avoid” system. This was then followed by extensive real-world testing. In order to gain approval, Amazon conducted further flight demonstrations in front of FAA flight experts. This included live displays around such dynamic obstacles as planes, helicopters, and even a hot-air balloon, all meant to demonstrate the safety and efficacy of their delivery system.
According to the press release, Amazon aims to be able to process 500 million packages per year by drone by the end of the decade, showing their commitment to a UAV-driven future even as key staff to the project were laid offin early 2023.
This new approval by the FAA follows some impressive displays of their Mk. 27 delivery drone’s capabilities, including a local “pharmacy-by-drone” service that promises residents of the area access to vital medication right to their door in less than an hour. This will be replaced over the coming year with the hybrid VTOL (vertical takeoff and landing) Mk. 30, which is a 6-rotor design which is both smaller and lighter than the existing model, with around twice the effective flight range and better capabilities during inclement weather.
Amazon’s original press release, announcing the new approvals, is available here.
Miriam McNabb is the Editor-in-Chief of DRONELIFE and CEO of JobForDrones, a professional drone services marketplace, and a fascinated observer of the emerging drone industry and the regulatory environment for drones. Miriam has penned over 3,000 articles focused on the commercial drone space and is an international speaker and recognized figure in the industry. Miriam has a degree from the University of Chicago and over 20 years of experience in high tech sales and marketing for new technologies.
For drone industry consulting or writing, Email Miriam.
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