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Amazon Deliveries

Spooky....those big brown trucks are pretty easy to spot. I've landed my place right when the UPS guy was parked in my turnaround, about 50' from the hangar and where I roll out. It was no problem of course, same with the FEDEX lady, one time I taxied up by her truck and told her, "throw your packages in the plane and jump in, we'll finish up your route real quick." All in good fun, but to think I need to worry about a Amazon drone on takeoff, when I'm on final, both of "us", committed,and both of us over/on MY property, it looks like a lawsuit ready to happen. I'd have to think Amazon has some aviation savvy legal guys on their staff, they better. I am assuming I have the right to be flying at and below drone cruising altitude, when landing at my own strip, maybe I'm wrong.
 
It will be very interesting to see the course of action on how this may get implemented over time. With the UK laws apparently it was the obvious locale to test it in, but I still have a hard time grasping the efficiency of drone delivery of one package at a time from I would expect thousands of small sub-regional hubs. Autonomous? Hand flown? Is this the next career for your son or daughter the video-gamer?

pb
 
My video-gamer son would be a great candidate for a pipeline drone operator. Right up until about mid-flight, where he would be bored silly of no "action-eye-candy" and probably get up and turn off the controls. lol.

I don't see the delivery business, but for pipeline/powerline/etc patrol, a UAV with infared and video seems like it might be a great fit.

pb
 
I wonder what they will be using for collision avoidance? Those things will not be easy to see by pilots of real airplanes.
 
If drone use becomes common I would also expect to see airspace change with mandatory transponders in all aircraft required in areas with automated drone usage.
DENNY
 
So, what does it take to get a law allowing low altitude exclusion zones of a specified radius of private airports, farms, schools etc? I have no interest in super fast deliveries from Amazon since I do very little business with them. Obviously they have no warehousing near where I am so this is a moot point for me.
 
wireweinie said:
There are transponders built specifically for drones.

Web
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That may be. However, it seems to me that since these "Fancy Toys" are encroaching on historically claimed and regulated airspace it is they which should have the detecting and avoiding capabilities. They should have an airplane sensor of some sort which automatically causes them to change their flight path to avoid human occupied airplanes and collision with other fixed objects.

I've seen no official discussion from any source about this important issue.
 
Couple years ago there was coverage of the customers landing site. Would you need a backyard secure area, could you build a platform on the side of the building, how big is the official landing mat you throw out on the lawn, etc. Have not heard one peep since. I think some of these questions are still open, hopefully enough to slow the rollout.
But Big Business has taken over, "move fast and break things" is the mantra. The self driving fiasco has shown its ok to break innocents in the name of progress. Ok to interfere with gps, ok to smear the heavens with 4000 satellites. The only upside is you'll be able to meet the universal ADSB requirement by tossing a $50 drone in the cabin.
 
I suspect in time our old dog will sit on the front porch waiting just as patiently for a drone biscuit as he now does for the mailman that he would bark at as a puppy.
 
Thinking a bit on this, just how do they determine their LZ for drop off?
I have 11+ acres of mixed land, clear lawn, fields, apple trees, woods and a pond. Seems logical they can fly around the 100+ YO Maple in front of the house and land on the small lawn right outside the front door, under the power lines. But generally when we have been out grocery shopping we park on that lawn. I expect they use detectors or a camera system to make sure the LZ is clear? If we drove new cars like most anyone else having our property damaged is no issue, insurance covers it. But we drive cars of particular interest that can not simply be replaced. Insurance is meaningless when they damage something that is near impossible to source parts for or to replace.
97% of what I buy is shipped in, I am on first name basis with every delivery driver and their backups. 15% of what I buy is international service either our of Europe or Asia.
I expect Amazon has everything documented about their service which to me does not really matter since I source everything they offer for less money elsewhere. I prefer to buy directly from their vendors.
 
I can't imagine that dodging drones would be any different than dodging random birds flying around. The government hasn't yet mandated ADSB-out on waterfowl so it's still the pilot's duty to see and avoid.
 
Yes but being blind sided by a drone would not be a good thing. I had read earlier this summer that there was development of a sensor system for avoidance for drone operations, at the time I did not take the time to study anything about it.
 
Crash said:
I can't imagine that dodging drones would be any different than dodging random birds flying around. The government hasn't yet mandated ADSB-out on waterfowl so it's still the pilot's duty to see and avoid.
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There is a big difference. Birds have the intelligence of self preservation. Drones are just computerized dumb machines.
 
skywagon8a said:
There is a big difference. Birds have the intelligence of self preservation. Drones are just computerized dumb machines.
Click to expand...

A lot of intelligent birds get run through engines and paint the front of various planes every year.

Either way, drones have fairly limited range at this point in time so they won't be able to travel more than maybe 20 miles max from an Amazon center which means they will be probably limited to cities/urban areas. In addition they are generally limited to extreme low altitude as well. As long as you're not buzzing downtown New York or LA I doubt you will ever encounter a delivery drone.

If a bunch of cub pilots are concerned about running into drones, the FAA has probably already taken GA into account in their rulemaking for drone operations concerning Amazon and limited their operations accordingly.
 
Limited whose operations? You really think a bunch of cub pilots will prevail over commercial drone operations? I doubt it. Air commerce will prevail I believe. I’m not suggesting an end to general aviation, but I would certainly expect new limitations as the airspace gets busier with drones and E/VTOL type aircraft.
 
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I'll be cool with delivery drones just as soon as the owner/operator has the same amount of skin in the game that I do. Eye for an eye.
 
DENNY said:
If drone use becomes common I would also expect to see airspace change with mandatory transponders in all aircraft required in areas with automated drone usage.
DENNY
Click to expand...
Transponders work so well down among the street signs.
 
Correct me if I am wrong but most all RC aircraft are or are becoming ADSB equipt? There are terrain avoidance abilities in drones along with return to home and autoland.
 
RC Aircraft are not required to use transponders but if they are not equipped it is illegal to fly an RC plane above 700ft if I recall right.

How many of us are flying below 1000ft in an area that's within a 20 mile radius of an Amazon ship center? It's illegal to go lower than 500ft of clearance between yourself and the highest building in an urban area so wouldn't that give plenty of clearance for drones to fly below that height?

I'm just trying to figure out what all the consternation is about. Seems like plenty of existing unused airspace for drones to zip about in urban areas. I doubt you'll see Amazon zipping a drone out to a remote area given the limitations of technology for the foreseeable future.
 
I got my Part 107 commercial operators license a while back and have been using drones to do tower inspections and find routes to run fiber to remote locations. The drones I use are damn smart and just like birds have self preservation. I might ask it to fly into a guy wire but even at 20+ mph in a gusty wind it maneuvers right around it. The stuff I use can go to 50lbs, well 49.9 lbs technically. Amazon's are larger and smarter. As hard as you might try to hit one, I bet they "see and avoid" quite well.

I imagine soon we will have a delivery box outside with some kind of identifier on them. Drone comes in with your encrypted security code, unlocks the box, drops the stuff off, tells the lid to close and lock, and flys off.

I have been playing with the Amazon Dash buttons, have a Tide, Clorox 2 and Cling Free button by the washer and dryer. When we run low, you hit the button and the next day Amazon drops it off on your doorstep. We can run to the store, I just got these to try out. It seems silly since I am 5 minutes from Costco, Walmart, Fred Meyers, Home Depot etc but it's just simple and it works. The only other one I am thinking about is a button for Cascade.
 
Amazon drones started with a 10 mile range and are now at 15.
You will see more box stores close and become drone centers.
 
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