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Amazon Gets Approval To Test New Delivery Drones
An anonymous reader writes: Amazon has been vocal in its complaints about how slow the FAA is in approving drones for test flights. In March they were finally given permission to test a drone they had developed six months prior, and they said the drone was already obsolete. Their complaints appear to have worked — yesterday, the FAA gave permission to test a new, updated delivery drone. According to the FAA's letter (PDF), the drone must stay at an altitude of less than 400 feet and at speeds of less than 100 mph.
From the urban commuters point of view while looking at a delivery truck:
Why do we need trucks that waste time and fuel idling in congested traffic compared to faster and more efficient drones?
Different locations have different challenges that need different solutions.
Because ground transportation in gridlocked cities takes forever.
No sir I dont like it.
Is the less than 100 mph limit really necessary?
It seems reasonable. There needs to be some kind of weight/height/speed limitations. What is NOT reasonable is for the FAA to be giving these one-off "permissions" to test particular drones. Instead, they should issue general requirements, based on what is safe, that apply to anyone, commercial or non-commercial. Instead, they are being as restrictive as politically possible, and then making exceptions for politically connected corporations that raise a fuss, like Amazon did. That is not the way a fair and transparent government agency should be behaving. I am glad that Amazon will be able to test their drones. But other companies and individuals should have the same opportunities.
Amazon wants automated deliveries with minimal human intervention. The FAA's exemptions still require that the drones be operated by a human, with a pilots license, and only within visual line of site of the pilot.
Looks like Amazon is going to have to keep testing their drones in Canada, where they can test what they actually want to do.