Amazon's ambitious drone delivery program is facing significant setbacks, particularly in College Station, Texas, where locals have voiced strong opposition to the noise created by the drones. Descriptions of the disturbances have likened them to having a constant leaf blower nearby. Despite some regulatory decisions siding with Amazon, the tech giant is scaling back operations due to local discontent. The experiment, which began in 2022, has also experienced technical failures, leading them to consider maintaining only one operational area in Arizona if College Station closes.
Amazon's delivery drones became so disruptive to locals that the tech giant is reportedly giving up on its pilot program in College Station, Texas. As Wired reports, the incredibly noisy aircraft quickly turned into a pest, with local master gardener Mark Smith describing the cacophony as if "your neighbor runs their leaf blower all day long.""
Despite the Federal Aviation Administration ultimately deciding that locals' complaints were "meritless or outside its purview," Amazon has seemingly taken the concerns to heart. The company reduced the number of flights, switched to a quieter drone, and is planning to let its lease in College Station expire by the end of September.
The project, launched in 2022 and hyped immensely by Amazon, is seemingly already winding down, with Smith telling Wired that he hasn't seen a drone in weeks. Amazon has launched its drones in three locations so far.
Overall, it feels like the project is turning into a major headache for Amazon. In January, the company had to pause all of its drone deliveries after two of its latest models crashed due to rain at a testing facility in Oregon.
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