By David Shepardson
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -Two U.S. agencies said Thursday they will investigate the collision of two Amazon Prime Air delivery drones with the boom of a crane in Tolleson, Arizona.
The National Transportation Safety Board and Federal Aviation Administration both said they will investigate the incident that occurred on Wednesday.
Amazon in November 2024 announced it had begun drone deliveries in the West Valley of the Phoenix Metro Area in Arizona from its same-day site in Tolleson and said Thursday it has temporarily paused Prime Air drone operations in Arizona.
Amazon spokesman Terrence Clark said the company was aware of the incident and “currently working with the relevant authorities to investigate.”
Amazon says customers who live near the Tolleson site can purchase an eligible item weighing 5 pounds or less and have it delivered by drone in under an hour.
In 2023, Amazon began delivering by drone prescription medications in partnership with Amazon Pharmacy to customers in College Station, Texas.
In August, the U.S. Transportation Department proposed new rules to speed deployment of drones beyond the visual line of sight of operators, a key change needed to advance commercial uses like package deliveries.
“It’s going to change the way that people and products move throughout our airspace… so you may change the way you get your Amazon package, you may get a Starbucks cup of coffee from a drone,” Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said.
Amazon has a goal of delivering 500 million packages annually by drone by the end of 2030.
(Reporting by David Shepardson; Editing by Aurora Ellis)
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