The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has just granted Amazon a new certification for its proposed autonomous drone delivery service. The Part 134 air carrier certificate issued by the regulator brings Amazon closer to launching its Prime Air drone delivery service, which is expected to significantly transform the delivery industry.
Amazon Prime Air Vice President David Carbon said in a statement that the certification was a vital step forward for the company, as it expresses the FAA's confidence in Amazon's operating and safety procedures. He added that with the certification Amazon is now closer to realizing its dream of providing one-day delivery services to customers worldwide.
A Part 135 certification is a major step in the acquisition of a license to operate autonomous aerial vehicles. During the process, Amazon had to go through a rigorous review with regulators closely looking at the company's operating protocols, training, and the maintenance of its autonomous drones. A certificate is only granted if the company is able to demonstrate to FAA officials that the operation of the vehicles is in fact safe to both the public and Amazon employees.
Amazon has yet to reveal any official timeline for the launch of Amazon Prime Air. The company previously stated that it was still in the process of testing and flying its autonomous drones to fine-tune them for their eventual launch into service.
The e-commerce giant has been working to utilize drones for its delivery services since 2013. During that time, Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos announced that he planned to use self-piloting drones to deliver goods to customers within the next five years. However, the company's target date to launch the service had been delayed as regulators stepped in to ensure public safety.
Last year, Amazon officially unveiled its latest autonomous drone prototypes. The new drones were fully electric and are capable of lifting up to five pounds of cargo. By utilizing the drones, Amazon stated that delivery times would be greatly reduced as the vehicles wouldn't have to contend with traffic. Amazon executives had stated during the unveiling that the service should become available "within months," but that hasn't really come into fruition.
Apart from Amazon, the FAA has also issued similar certificates to two other proposed autonomous drone delivery services. This includes Google's Wing Aviation and UPS's Flight Forward services.
