Amazon Is Investigated By The FAA After Delivery Drones Break Internet Cables In Texas

Illustration of goods delivery drones from Amazon (photo; x @classcnbc)

JAKARTA - Amazon is facing an investigation from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) after one of its delivery drones dropped internet cables in central Texas last week. The incident comes as the company is working to expand drone delivery networks in more parts of the United States, as well as facing increasingly fierce competition from Walmart which is also developing similar services.

The incident took place on November 18 at around 12:45 p.m. local time in Waco, Texas. According to an incident video seen and verified by CNBC, the MK30 type Amazon drone just delivered the package when one of its six propellers caught in a customer's internet cable.

The video shows the drone hitting the cable until it cuts off, before the engine appears to be off and the drone makes automatic landings with the propellers turning slowly.

The FAA confirmed it was investigating the incident. Meanwhile, the National Transportation Safety Agency (NTSB) stated that it was aware of the incident, but has not yet opened an official investigation.

Amazon acknowledged the incident and explained that the drone was conducting a 'safe contingent landing', which is a safe landing procedure when dealing with unexpected conditions. The company added that there were no injuries or broad internet disruptions as a result of the incident.

Amazon has paid customer cable repair fees and apologized for the inconvenience caused. Drones are said to remain intact unless minor damage to one of the propellers.

The incident came shortly after federal investigators opened a separate investigation last month regarding the collision of two Prime Air drones in Arizona. The two drones crashed into a construction crane on Tolleson, near Phoenix, which saw Amazon temporarily suspend drone delivery services in the area.

Amazon has been trying for more than a decade to realize the vision of its founder, Jeff Bezos, who envisions drones delivering toothpaste, books and other necessities to customers' homes within 30 minutes or less.

Amazon drone service was first tested on a limited basis in 2022 at College Station, Texas, and Lockedford, California. But the journey to large-scale operations was not smooth, underdeveloped by strict regulations, an unreachable series of deadlines, as well as a wave of layoffs in 2023 when CEO Andy Jassy made a massive cost savings.

Amazon has set an ambitious target to deliver 500 million packages per year via drones by the end of the decade. The latest generation drone, MK30, is designed smaller, lighter, and quieter, and is equipped with a sense-and-avoid' system that allows drones to detect and avoid various obstacles. The company recommends customers to provide an open area of about three meters to ensure the delivery process runs safely.

The drone delivery service in Waco began rolling out earlier this month for customers living within a certain radius of Amazon's same-day distribution center, for items weighing five pounds or less.

The package was promised in less than an hour. Apart from Waco, Amazon has also operated drone services in Kansas City, Pontiac in Michigan, San Antonio, Ruskin in Florida, and plans to expand to Richardson, Texas.

Meanwhile, Walmart, which is also racing in the air delivery industry, has been offering drone service since 2021, in collaboration with companies such as Alphabet's Wing and Zipline startups to make deliveries in a number of states, including Texas.