Texans Push Back on Amazon’s Proposed Drone Delivery Expansion

The mayor of College Station wrote to the FAA urging the regulator to reject a request by Amazon to more than double its service area in the city.

Tuesday, July 16, 2024 at 04:22 PM ET

Verified

Amazon Prime Air hopes to use its latest drone, the MK30, to expand its delivery area in College Station, Texas. [Courtesy: Amazon Prime Air]

Key Takeaways:

College Station, Texas, is pushing back against Amazon Prime Air's proposed significant expansion of drone delivery services, citing widespread resident concerns about drone noise.
Amazon seeks to dramatically increase its College Station operations, including tripling the service area, increasing flights, and extending hours, partially enabled by its new, purportedly quieter MK30 drone.
Despite general support for the service, the city council has urged the FAA to delay approving the increased delivery volume and expanded operating days/hours until Amazon implements further noise mitigation measures.

See a mistake? Contact us.

Texans who were introduced to Amazon Prime Air’s drone delivery offering in late 2022 are pushing back on the company’s proposed expansion of the service.

In a letter to the FAA penned by John Nichols, the mayor of College Station, Texas—one of two locations where Prime Air began flying in 2022—on behalf of the city council he urged the regulator to deny a request that would more than double the service’s range. The mayor cited noise concerns from residents as the chief factor guiding the city’s position.

Jack Daleo

Jack is a staff writer covering advanced air mobility, including everything from drones to unmanned aircraft systems to space travel—and a whole lot more. He spent close to two years reporting on drone delivery for FreightWaves, covering the biggest news and developments in the space and connecting with industry executives and experts. Jack is also a basketball aficionado, a frequent traveler and a lover of all things logistics.