With FAA approval, Wing can now deliver drones of drones in Virginia
Wing, the airline carrier project spun out of Google, has become the first US drone operator to receive federal approval as an airline, which means it can start legally throwing parcels on people's front door stations in the United States.
Before the news of the approval of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) – first reported by Bloomberg on Tuesday – Wing was only cleared to carry out its commercial delivery service in Australia, where it has been tested since 2014.
Reception Airline Certification from the FAA means that Wing can start charging customers for the contents of the deliveries – something that drone companies are not allowed to do for deliveries beyond the operator's field of vision, according to the Bloomberg report. The status change also means that Wing can operate its drones over crowds and in urban areas, according to the report, making certification even more valuable.
Other companies like Uber and UPS are referring to the same approval, according to a Washington Post report.
Wing & # 39; s permits will start in the state of Virginia and may extend across the United States over time with approvals. A spokesman for the company told Business Insider on Tuesday that Wing was to start in the southwestern cities of Blacksburg and Christiansburg, where it hopes to start later this year.
In Australia, Wing drones have delivered everything from burritos to coffee to over-the-counter medications. Commercial services in Virginia are likely to be similar.
The approval ̵[ads1]1; which comes five years after Amazon's CEO Jeff Bezos had foreseen his company to start drone delivery services – cannot be welcomed by anyone.
Although Wing said it has evolved and tested a drone with a quieter propeller, Australian residents complained about the noise of the company's earlier models, to the point that someone used to spend less time outside. A person in a Wall Street Journal report resembled the sound of a "chainsaw ballistic".
Read more: Alphabet's drone delivery company tests a quieter delivery drone after its original model annoyed urban people and their dogs
Beyond sound, privacy is also a concern – especially given the company's ties to Google.
This is an important step forward for the safe testing and integration of drones in our economy, says Transport Minister Elaine L. Chao in the announcement on Tuesday. "Security remains our first priority, as this technology continues to develop and realize its full potential."
For Wing's parent company, Alphabet, commercial drone delivery is another attempt – similar to the effort of launching an autonomous ride service with Waymo – diversifying its businesses outside of ads and searches.
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