Amazon.com (NASDAQ: AMZN) partnered with the government of the United Kingdom (U.K.) to explore the necessary steps to accelerate the process to allowing small unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) or drones to deliver parcels in the country.
The e-commerce giant obtained a permit from a cross-government team supported by the U.K. Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) to test three key innovations including beyond line of sight operations in rural and suburban areas; sensor performance to ensure the drones can identify and about obstacles, and flights where one person operates multiple highly-automated drones.
Last year, Amazon released a video narrated by former Top Gear TV host Jeremy Clarkson, highlighting how drones could deliver packages. The e-commerce giant aims to start using drones to deliver packages by 2017.
Amazon says drone delivery will create new jobs
In a statement, Paul Misener, vice president of global innovation policy and communications at Amazon, said, “The U.K. is a leader in enabling drone innovation – we’ve been investing in Prime Air research and development here for quite some time. This announcement strengthens our partnership with the U.K. and brings Amazon closer to our goal of using drones to safely deliver parcels in 30 minutes to customers in the UK and elsewhere around the world.”
He added that the partnership would help them understand how to use drones safely and reliably in the logistics industry. It will also help identify the necessary operating rules and safety regulations to help the drone industry move forward.
“Using small drones for the delivery of parcels will improve customer experience, create new jobs in a rapidly growing industry, and pioneer new sustainable delivery methods to meet future demand,” said Misener.
Furthermore, he said, “The UK is charting a path forward for drone technology that will benefit consumers, industry and society.”
U.K. wants to enable innovation in drone technology
The CAA will be fully involved in exploring the potential safe use of drones beyond line of sight, and the result of the tests will be helpful in the development of future policy and regulations.
“We want to enable the innovation that arises from the development of drone technology by safely integrating drones into the overall aviation system. These tests by Amazon will help inform our policy and future approach,” said CAA Policy Director Tim Johnson.
Last month, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) released its Small UAS Rule Part 107, which will be effective on August 29, 2016.
