Amazon said Aug. 31 it has received approval from the Federal Aviation Administration to operate its Prime Air delivery drones, CNBC reported.
The approval allows Amazon to carry property on small drones beyond the visual line of sight of the pilot. Amazon said it is not ready to deploy package deliveries using drones but will begin testing them.
"This certification is an important step forward for Prime Air and indicates the FAA’s confidence in Amazon’s operating and safety procedures for an autonomous drone delivery service that will one day deliver packages to our customers around the world," David Carbon, vice president of Prime Air, told CNBC.
Amazon unveiled its autonomous drone in June 2019 and said it would begin making deliveries within months. The FAA said at the time that it would grant Amazon approval to test the device throughout the next year.
Amazon said it planned to first test the drones by having them deliver small items such as toothpaste and razors.
Amazon aims to drop packages off at customers' doorsteps in 30 minutes or less, according to CNBC.