Amazon's ambitions for drone delivery are facing a buzzkill, with residents of College Station, Texas, voicing their displeasure over the incessant noise from the company's test flights.
The Texan town, home to Texas A&M University, has been a proving ground for Amazon's Prime Air drone delivery programme since 2022. The initiative aims to utilise drones to deliver some of the estimated 5.9 billion packages Amazon shipped in 2023, with a target of sub-one-hour deliveries for everyday items.
However, the reality of drone delivery has proven to be more complex than the theory. For the 127,000 residents of College Station, the drone noise has become a nuisance.
"It sounds like a giant hive of bees," John Case, a 40-year resident of the town, told CNBC. "You know it's coming because it's pretty loud."
Another resident, Amina Alikhan, described the noise as "a fly coming by your ear over and over, and you can't make it stop."
The situation is set to worsen as Amazon has proposed increasing the number of daily drone flights from 200 to 469. This prompted College Station Mayor John Nichols to write to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) expressing concerns about the escalating noise levels and their impact on residents' enjoyment of their homes.
Despite acknowledging the noise concerns, Amazon has maintained its commitment to drone delivery. In a call with residents, an Amazon executive confirmed the company would not renew its lease in College Station and would be moving by October 2025. However, the company has left open the possibility of relocating to another site.
The company's drone delivery programme has faced numerous hurdles. In 2023, it was caught in a company-wide cost-cutting exercise that resulted in layoffs within the division. Amazon also faced opposition from residents in Lockeford, California, who reportedly considered shooting down the drones. As a result, the company shifted its testing operations to Tolleson, Arizona.
Despite these setbacks, Amazon has cleared a major regulatory hurdle, with the FAA granting permission for its drones to fly beyond the line of sight of their operators. This approval, achieved through the development of collision-avoidance technology, opens the door for Amazon to expand its drone delivery programme. Other companies, such as Alphabet and Walmart, are also developing similar capabilities for their drones.
However, the noise complaints highlight the challenges Amazon faces in integrating drone delivery into everyday life. The company will need to find a way to strike a balance between its ambitions for drone delivery and the needs of local communities. The success of Amazon's Prime Air programme hinges on its ability to overcome these challenges.
