Amazon Prime Drone Usage

Amazon Prime Air Drone Usage

Jacob D. Forbes

Embry Riddle Aeronautical University

ABSTRACT

This paper will address the challenges and issues associated with integrating Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) into the National Airspace System (NAS) in order to fully utilize the capability and advancements of UAS in the civilian sector, such as Amazon Prime Air. Amazon is the world’s largest electronic marketplace and currently uses traditional methods to deliver parcels. Amazon has a concept to use unmanned aircraft to deliver packages to customer’s front doors within thirty minutes of ordering. I will briefly discuss the history of unmanned aircraft used in the civilian commerce sector along with the types of aircraft being used, the laws or legislation in place to facilitate this delivery method, the problems conceived and voiced in regards to using unmanned aircraft for delivery vehicles. Using this type of delivery system will have to be cleared by agencies such as the Federal Aviation Administration and selected postal carriers like USPS, FEDEX, UPS, etc. This paper will also discuss the biggest roadblock for Amazon’s proposed delivery method, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and its lack of policies and regulations concerning the commercial use of UAVs in the National Airspace system (NAS). Under the FAA Modernization and Reform Act of 2012, the FAA has been tasked to overcome technical, regulatory, and operational challenges that will enable UAS integration into the NAS. The FAA’s Roadmap for Integration of Civil Unmanned Aircraft Systems in the National Airspace System identifies the actions and considerations needed to enable UAS integration. The author covers a brief history of the UAV, and a summary of his findings. The author also examines the problem of UAS integration limitations into the NAS on commercial businesses such as Amazon. A review of the problem, solutions for...