Amazon’s Air service may be up in the air after draft rules published by the Federal Aviation Authority appeared to prohibit the service. The new draft rules for the use of drones is US airspace say that pilots need to remain within eyesight of unmanned crafts. However, the FAA has also said that it may allow for a second line of sight in some cases. It also says that pilots need to be FAA certified to operate drones.
Amazon say that they remain “committed” to their drone delivery plans. Their vice-president of global public policy, Paul Misener, said: “We are committed to realizing our vision… and are prepared to deploy where we have the regulatory support we need.”
The company last year said that it would be ready to launch Amazon Air as soon as regulations were in place. The rules are to be opened to public consultation and aren’t likely to come into force for a couple of years.
The rules were “applauded” by the Small UAV (Unmanned Aerial Vehicle) Coalition but said that it hoped the line of sight rule would be relaxed. Amazon is a member of the coalition.
The coalition said: “Until small UAVs are able to go beyond the line of sight, we are not maximizing the technology as other companies already do.”
Amazon recently threatened to take their drone research out of the US.
