amazon drones will not make deliveries for the foreseeable future. According <a target="_blank" data-i13n="cpos:1;pos:1" href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-01-17/amazon-pauses-drone-deliveries-after-aircraft-crashed-in-rain” rel=”nofollow noopener” target=”_blank” data-ylk=”slk:Bloomberg;cpos:1;pos:1;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas” class=”link “>BloombergThe company halted all commercial drone deliveries in Texas and Arizona after a previously undisclosed event in which two of amazon's MK30 drones crashed at the Pendleton, Oregon, airport it uses for testing. MK30 is the company's next-generation drone model, which is lighter and has a longer range than its predecessor, the MK27. The incidents took place in December, and one of the drones even caught fire after falling. amazon reportedly determined that its drones crashed due to a software issue related to light rain falling at the time the tests were being conducted.
The company said, however, that the accidents were not the “main reason” it suspended its drone deliveries. amazon spokesman Sam Stephenson said Bloomberg that it is “currently in the process of making software changes to the drone” and that the operational pause is voluntary. With the upgrades complete, amazon still has to get approval from the Federal Aviation Administration before it can resume operations. “Employees at the drone sites, who were informed of the action on Friday, will continue to be paid during the pause,” Stephenson added.
In addition to the December accidents, two MK30 drones collided during another test a few months earlier. Stephenson explained that amazon hopes to see incidents like these during testing and that they will help the company improve the security of the service. amazon has been sending non-medical deliveries via drones in Texas since 2022 before adding prescription drugs a year later. In 2024, amazon stopped drone deliveries in California, but also launched the service in Phoenix, Arizona.
