Amazon promised this Monday that it will start deliver orders using drones beginning later this year, when the system will begin testing in Lockeford, a small town in central California.
The trading giant email assured in a statement that It has the necessary technology. It only needs to receive the approval of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA, for its acronym in English), so that its products can fall from the sky to the buyers’ houses.
“The promise of drone shipping has always like science fiction. We have worked almost a decade to make it a reality, “Amazon boasted in a statement.
The company assured that its engineers developed a technology that solves one of the main problems of most drones in common use: they need to be manned. Most of these gadgets cannot recognize other objects on the road.
The Seattle-based company defines this advancement as a “sophisticated” and “industry-leading” system. Its technology is capable of spot and dodge other aircraft, people, animals and obstacles, without the need for “visual observers”.
lockford, the city where Amazon will begin testing the drone system, is about 150 kilometers from San Francisco. The town has just over 3,000 inhabitants.
Although the details about the operation of these drones are scarce, they will arrive in the garden of the buyer’s house, they will land in a “free” zone, sthey will drop the package and return.
Delivery of orders in the air
Despite the novelty of the technology, Amazon is not the first company to deliver orders by air.
Its main competitor in the country, Walmart, has been testing drone delivery since last year in Arkansas. A few weeks ago he announced that he was expanding his program in certain parts of the states of Arizona, Arkansas, Florida, Texas, Utah and Virginia, with the promise of reaching up to four million households.
In the case of Walmart, shipments by drone they cost $3.99 and hold a maximum of 10 pounds (4.5 Kg).
