Amazon’s first ever drone delivery was nowhere near as impressive as it looked
Amazon Air's first DRONE delivery was made to the company's NEXT DOOR neighbour just 700 METRES away, it has been revealed.
Earlier this week the company tweeted that it had made its first aircraft delivery and claimed to have dropped off the package just 13 minutes after it was ordered.
But investigations show the parcel, containing an Amazon Fire TV box and a bag of popcorn, were flown from Amazon's drone testing site near Cambridge, across ONE field to a farmhouse just 700 metres away.
Catherine Shelby, 56, who lives nearby, said: "The house is so close to the testing site it would have been quicker to walk there with the package."
Amazon's US billionaire founder Jeff Bezos confirmed the delivery in a tweet earlier in the week and posted a video.
He wrote: "First-ever Amazon Prime Air customer delivery is in the books. 13 min - click to delivery."
In the slick film Amazon Air promised to deliver packages in 30 minutes or less and said it had made its first drop off on December 7 in just 13 minutes.
The video shows an order from customer, Richard B, arriving at the Amazon Air fulfilment centre in Cambridgeshire.
Then moments later an electrically powered Amazon drone makes its way down an automated track, before rising into the sky with the package on board.
Customer Richard B is then seen going into his garden to find the parcel, which has been dropped onto his lawn by the drone.
The video claims that Amazon has started a private trial for two customers in Cambridge, but will eventually expand it to "dozens" in the local area, and then beyond.
But investigations show that Richard B's house is actually located right next door to the drone testing site and that the aircraft would only have been in the sky for a few minutes.
Richard B said: "It is early days but the drone delivery worked. It took just 13 minutes from when I placed the order."
Amazon has spent millions of pounds developing its drone service. In July the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) lifted strict drone flying restrictions to enable the company to start testing its drones.
It means Amazon is allowed to have one pilot controlling multiple autonomous drones and can operate a drone without a direct line of sight.
Over the summer Amazon secretly flew its drones in a field, around five miles east of its research and development centre in Cambridge.
It built a wall of haybales to hide the testing area, but the drone could be spotted when it was flying in the sky.
The secret site also contains a blue control tower, with a five-metre tall antenna, and a manicured landing site, the size of a football pitch to resemble a front garden.
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The area is constantly patrolled by security men and vans, with Amazon keen to keep its latest development to itself.
Amazon has also applied for a patent for anti-collision avoidance systems on their drones.
The company has stated the drones will cruise below 400ft, carrying packages up to 5lbs and guided by GPS.
Amazon does not require a licence for the drones but once it rolls out the service further it will need to obtain the permission of the Civil Aviation Authority for every delivery as all commercial drone flights must be approved by the body.
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