Some California and Texas cities will start seeing Amazon delivery drones in the air. (1)
That's an interesting thing to think about. Will we soon get used to seeing a cloud of mechanical bug looking thjngs fluttering through the air, delivering same day packages to homes. if you haven't heard, The idea is instead of relying on the postal service to hand deliver your packages to your doorstep, these drones will set the package in your backyard, where it should be more safe from porch pirates.
I don't think the backyards of most eureka homes will be that much safer than the front porch, as we have a massive abundance of drug addicted criminals roaming the streets. You and I can imagine grown men on little bicycles following these delivery drones around town waiting for them to land for an easy pickup!
I like technology and support whatever raises the standard of living -- propelling humanity to new heights, -- how do we embrace this delivery system without ruining our view of clear skies and distant redwoods enhanced horizons? My hope would be that these drones would stick to designated pathways and then break away at the last minute to find the right home to drop off the package. The answer is going to be a compromise. Im thinking at first these things might follow along local roadways instead of going as the crow flies, but then you have to address all the traffic hazard situations. If they fly too close to the road could they be a visual nuisance for drivers, and if they fly too high they might be more at risk to wind and connectivity issues. My hunch is that By sticking to a sort of air highway that has yet to be mapped out, packages will get to customers quickly and the sky will not be as ugly as it would be if these drones just go everywhere endlessly.
Drone delivery is the future. Many of us practice shopping local because it's the right thing to do, but in order to remain competitive you better believe that your local mom and pops will have to use these drones, too. There is no way we merchants will all just sit around and let Amazon have that big of an advantage-- so the sooner we figure out where package delivery drones may go, and may not go, the sooner we can get in with the future of online sales. Flying machines that deliver is only the beginning, once the regulations are set and we all are briefed on how this is going to work, i wouldn't be surprised if pizza delivery and all the other door dash type businesses were absorbed too. While big Amazon is bootstrapping this technology, it may eventually become a favorite of the small business, who would be able to deliver same day shipping --just like the big guys.
Sources:
1) https://www.aboutamazon.com/news/transportation/amazon-prime-air-prepare...
