Ready To Get Your Drugs By Drone? Why Amazon Plan Could Be Game-Changer
Dan Diamond
3/20/2015
Ready To Get Your Drugs By Drone? Why Amazon Plan Could Be Game-Changer
Comment Now Follow Comments
Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos knew skeptics would pan his drone-delivery plan.
“I know this looks like science fiction. It’s not,” Bezos told 60 Minutes more than a year ago, showing off Amazon’s test-model octocopters. And he acknowledged that Amazon’s proposal to use robot drones faced major regulatory and technical hurdles.
But the visionary CEO was confident that “Amazon Prime Air” would fly.
“It will work, and it will happen, and it’s gonna be a lot of fun,” Bezos argued.
Launch day is still a few years away — at best — but it just got a lot closer.
The Federal Aviation Administration on Thursday awarded an “experimental airworthiness certificate” to Amazon AMZN +1.46% that would clear the way for the company to begin testing its drone program.
It’s not blanket approval; the FAA’s permitting only limited forms of testing, such as having a pilot on hand to fly the drone at all times. (That’s important, because Amazon wants its Prime Air drones to be autonomous.) And many, many technical and regulatory hurdles still loom.
But the FAA certificate represents a necessary step for Amazon, especially after the company made several moves that were contingent on winning federal support. For example, Amazon’s already been hiring drone software developers, drone regulatory experts, and even drone pilots, too.
http://www.forbes.com/sites/dandiam...s-by-drone-amazon-plan-could-be-game-changer/
Dan Diamond
3/20/2015
Ready To Get Your Drugs By Drone? Why Amazon Plan Could Be Game-Changer
Comment Now Follow Comments
Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos knew skeptics would pan his drone-delivery plan.
“I know this looks like science fiction. It’s not,” Bezos told 60 Minutes more than a year ago, showing off Amazon’s test-model octocopters. And he acknowledged that Amazon’s proposal to use robot drones faced major regulatory and technical hurdles.
But the visionary CEO was confident that “Amazon Prime Air” would fly.
“It will work, and it will happen, and it’s gonna be a lot of fun,” Bezos argued.
Launch day is still a few years away — at best — but it just got a lot closer.
The Federal Aviation Administration on Thursday awarded an “experimental airworthiness certificate” to Amazon AMZN +1.46% that would clear the way for the company to begin testing its drone program.
It’s not blanket approval; the FAA’s permitting only limited forms of testing, such as having a pilot on hand to fly the drone at all times. (That’s important, because Amazon wants its Prime Air drones to be autonomous.) And many, many technical and regulatory hurdles still loom.
But the FAA certificate represents a necessary step for Amazon, especially after the company made several moves that were contingent on winning federal support. For example, Amazon’s already been hiring drone software developers, drone regulatory experts, and even drone pilots, too.
http://www.forbes.com/sites/dandiam...s-by-drone-amazon-plan-could-be-game-changer/
