Amazon drones will not be making any deliveries in the near future. According to Bloomberg, the company has suspended all commercial drone deliveries in Texas and Arizona following a previously undisclosed incident in which two Amazon MK30 drones crashed at the Pendleton, Oregon airport it uses for testing. The MK30 is a new generation drone model that is lighter and has a longer range than its predecessor, the MK27. The incidents occurred in December, with one of the drones even catching fire after falling. Amazon has reportedly determined that its drones crashed due to a software problem that was caused by light rain falling during the tests.
However, the company said that the crashes were not the “primary reason” it was suspending drone deliveries. Amazon spokesman Sam Stevenson told Bloomberg that the company is “currently in the process of making changes to the drone software” and that the operational pause is voluntary. Once the updates are complete, Amazon still needs to get permission from the Federal Aviation Administration before it can resume operations. “Employees at sites with drones who were notified of the action on Friday will continue to be paid during the pause,” Stevenson added.
In addition to the accidents in December, two MK30 drones collided during another test a few months earlier. Stevenson explained that Amazon expects such incidents during testing and that they help the company improve the safety of the service. Since 2022, Amazon has been sending non-medical cargo with drones in Texas, and a year later added prescription drug delivery. In 2024, Amazon stopped drone delivery in California, but launched the service in Phoenix, Arizona.
