Amazon Prime Air drone delivery is finally here. For years, Amazon has been promising deliveries via a network of drones, and the company just announced that they’re ready to take flight.
The news follows several other recent initiatives by Amazon and others to develop autonomous vehicles as a way of getting products to customers more quickly and cheaply than traditional methods. We saw Loblaw in Canada launching self-driving trucks for grocery deliveries in 2020 as online shopping surged in the midst of social distancing and lockdowns. Nuro also became a hit after partnering with Walmart, CVS Pharmacy, and Dominos Pizza.
Drones are the latest technology being used to deliver goods to your doorstep. Online retailers have been using drones to deliver packages for years, but the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) made it difficult for companies to use these unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) for commercial purposes.
Amazon started working with the FAA in 2016 to develop a drone delivery system that would safely transport packages up to five pounds. On December 7th, 2017, Amazon announced that they had achieved their goal and were ready to launch their new delivery service Prime Air in 2018!
Forbes reported that “Amazon plans on launching a pilot program of its drone delivery system in early 2018, which will see drones flying at altitudes below 400 feet, transporting packages weighing less than 5 pounds.” The company also announced that they plan on expanding this program once they receive approval from the FAA. Well, approval came in 2020, and today, in 2022, Amazon Prime Air drone deliveries are here!
Is everyone ready for drone delivery?
While the technology is exciting, some people will remain skeptical. Some will still prefer to look through a Food Basics flyer, order their groceries online, and have a human deliver them to their front door or porch. Better still, some will still want to walk the store aisles and physically see and touch their product choices. That human element that retailers like Food Basics have will always win them their fair share of customers. However, this is not to say drones will not be seen in the food retailing industry in the near future.
A brief history of the development of high-tech drones
The history of the development of high-tech drones is a long one. It starts with the first unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and continues up to the present day.
The first UAVs were developed during World War I by the Germans in order to support their troops on the battlefield. These small aircraft could be used as reconnaissance vehicles, but also as bombers and fighters. The idea was that they would be able to fly over enemy lines, perform their missions and then return safely to base.
In fact, this didn’t always happen – many UAVs crashed or were shot down by enemy action. But the concept was sound enough for further development at this early stage in the history of high-tech drones.
The first commercial UAV was launched by Aerovironment in 1981 and was used for scientific research purposes. This was followed by the development of military UAVs, which were used by the United States Air Force during Operation Desert Storm in 1991 and Operation Allied Force in 1999-2000 against Serbia, Kosovo, and Serbia respectively.
In 2001, Congress passed legislation requiring all federal agencies to develop plans for integrating UAVs into national airspace by 2015. In 2004, Congress directed NASA’s Aeronautics Research Mission Directorate (ARMD) to conduct studies on integrating low-altitude small unmanned aircraft systems into the National Airspace System (NAS). Since then, NASA has been testing various types of drones with varying degrees of autonomy so that they can operate safely around manned aircraft without posing any danger to human life.
Amazon Prime Air drone delivery
To operate safely, Amazon’s drones use sense-and-avoid systems. According to Amazon, their drones can dependably avoid impediments such as other aircraft, buildings, people, and pets.
Amazon says it has completed over 500 successful deliveries since starting back in 2016. It also claims that it recently became capable of delivering packages weighing up to 2kg within 30 minutes or less from when they are ordered through its website or app.
Who will be using Amazon Air Drone Delivery?
For now, customers in Lockeford, California, will be able to place orders via Amazon Prime Air and wait for the drone to appear. They will place an order as usual and obtain an estimated arrival time as well as an order status tracker. The drone will fly to its destination, drop the parcel from a safe height in the customer’s yard, and then zoom away.
Takeaway: This new technology definitely has a lot of potentials, and if implemented correctly, could greatly change our lives for the better.
