When Amazon completed its first ever drone delivery in the United Kingdom last year, the company released official footage touting its latest milestone. But its first demo flight on this side of the pond was a much quieter affair, captured by a bystander at a recent company event.
A Prime Air drone delivered a few bottles of sunscreen to a patch of grass while attendees at the company’s MARS conference in Palm Springs, CA watched, reports The Verge. While there isn’t currently an announcement on the Prime Air site or any footage, a YouTube user uploaded a video of the action today:
The fully autonomous delivery marks the first time Amazon’s drones have flown for the public in America, the company says, as previous flights were conducted on private property.
Prime Air vice president Gur Kimchi tells The Verge that the test flight was conducted with the assistance of the Federal Aviation Administration, bringing the company “one step closer to making 30-minute package delivery by drone a reality.”
Of course, drones won’t be filling our skies with packages just yet: FAA regulations don’t allow commercial drones to fly over any humans not involved in operating them, and requires them to stay within line of sight of their pilots at all times.
Amazon also alone in the Game of Drones, as UPS is testing a system that launches drones from trucks for residential deliveries.
by Mary Beth Quirk via Consumerist
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