Amazon has finally got approval from the Federal Aviation Administration to start testing same day delivery drone prototype for its Prime Air service, that aims to transport packages to Amazon customers in under 30 minutes. in the United States.
This is the second time in as many months that the online retail giant, Amazon has received a drone testing certificate from the FAA. But the agency's response was hardly swift, finally granting
an "experimental airworthiness certificate" to Amazon in March 2015.
"We don’t test it any more. We’ve moved on to more advanced designs that we already are testing abroad," Misener said, according to The Guardian, "Nowhere outside of the United States have we been required to wait more than one or two months to begin testing."
On Wednesday April 8, the FAA has granted the company's request for exemption. The exemption dictates that Amazon's drones fly no higher than 400 ft
(122 m), no faster than 100 mph (161 km/h) and remain within the pilot's
line of sight, among a raft of other conditions relating to safety and
maintenance.
The most obvious obstacle Amazon faces is convincing the FAA that drones can be safely flown beyond the line of sight.
Ultimately, Amazon hopes to operate in a slice of airspace above 200
ft (61 m) and beneath 500 ft (152 m), where general aviation begins. It
plans to shoot autonomous drones along 10 mi (16 km) long skyways at 50
mph (80.5 km/h) with packages weighing up to 55 lb (25 kg) in tow.
Source: FAA
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