Amazon says it could take more of its drone research out of the US due to the country’s strict regulations. The online retail giant has been waiting for the FAA (Federal Aviation Administration) to give approval for its test drones near Seattle, according to a report from Reuters.
The company first announced plans for a drone delivery service called Amazon Prime Air late last year. The FAA are yet to comment. Amazon vice president of gloval public policy said “Without approval of our testing in the United States, we will be forced to continue expanding our Prime Air R&D footprint abroad”.
Amazon is planning on using small drones to deliver small packages of up to 2.3kg in weight, which would allow customers to receive their items within 30 minutes of ordering them. Although six drone operators were given permission to carry out commercial flight tests, Amazon was not one of them. The FAA said it took a number of factors into consideration when giving approval, including risk and safety. Amazon has a drone lab for research and development purposes in the UK. Google and DHL are also experimenting with drones.
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