亞馬遜周一宣布，該公司已經獲得英國民航局和其他組織的許可，得以在該國測試無人機送貨業務。
亞馬遜在聲明中說，由英國民航局支持的跨部門團隊已經允許亞馬遜探索三大關鍵創新：在農村和近郊地區測試超出視線範圍的無人機運營；通過測試傳感器的性能來確保無人機能夠識別並躲避障礙物；讓一名操作人員同時操作多臺高度自動化的無人機。
這都是為了拓展亞馬遜的Prime Air無人機配送業務，這項業務希望在用戶下單後30分鐘內，通過無人機送貨上門。
亞馬遜2014年率先向美國監管者提交類似測試活動的監管審批。
事實上，不光亞馬遜能夠通過這些測試獲益，英國政府同樣如此。
「我們希望將無人機安全地整合到整個航空系統中，從而促進無人機技術的發展和創新。」英國民航局政策主管蒂姆·詹森(Tim Johnson)說，「亞馬遜的這些測試將為我們的政策和未來的落實方法提供信息。」
附亞馬遜官方聲明：
Amazon and UK Government Aim for the Sky with Partnership on Drones
New Program Will Explore the Safe Use of Drones for Delivery
SEATTLE--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jul. 25, 2016-- (NASDAQ:AMZN) – Amazon has today announced a partnership with the UK Government to explore the steps needed to make the delivery of parcels by small drones a reality, allowing Amazon to trial new methods of testing its delivery systems.
A cross-Government team supported by the UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) has provided Amazon with permissions to explore three key innovations: beyond line of sight operations in rural and suburban areas, testing sensor performance to make sure the drones can identify and avoid obstacles, and flights where one person operates multiple highly-automated drones.
「The UK is a leader in enabling drone innovation – we』ve been investing in Prime Air research and development here for quite some time,」 said Paul Misener, Amazon’s Vice President of Global Innovation Policy and Communications. 「This announcement strengthens our partnership with the UK and brings Amazon closer to our goal of using drones to safely deliver parcels in 30 minutes to customers in the UK and elsewhere around the world.」
This ground-breaking work will help Amazon and the Government understand how drones can be used safely and reliably in the logistics industry. It will also help identify what operating rules and safety regulations will be needed to help move the drone industry forward.
「Using small drones for the delivery of parcels will improve customer experience, create new jobs in a rapidly growing industry, and pioneer new sustainable delivery methods to meet future demand,」 said Misener. 「The UK is charting a path forward for drone technology that will benefit consumers, industry and society.」
As the UK’s aviation safety regulator, the CAA will be fully involved in this work to explore the potential for safe use of drones beyond line of sight. The outcomes of these tests will help inform the development of future policy and regulation in this area.
「We want to enable the innovation that arises from the development of drone technology by safely integrating drones into the overall aviation system,」 said Tim Johnson, CAA Policy Director. 「These tests by Amazon will help inform our policy and future approach.」