Already last year Amazon had said it took Italy into particular consideration regarding your project deliver the products ordered on the site with drones. In fact, in October 2023, the global e-commerce giant announced its plan inaugurate the drone delivery service throughout the country as early as 2024.
Although many turned their noses up at these declarations, certain that such a scenario was absolutely unachievable, especially in our country, it seems instead that Amazon’s Prime Air project for Italy is now proceeding slowly but inexorably behind the scenes. In fact, amidst the general skepticism, the news came as a surprise that the Abruzzo municipality of San Salvoin the province of Chieti, could be the one indicated for the first flights of Amazon drones.
In fact, a V.Inc.A, i.e. an Environmental Impact Assessment, has been published on the municipality’s websiteproposed by Amazon Italia Logistica SRL with for the activity of “CONSTRUCTION OF A PRIME AIR DELIVERY PLATFORM IN THE CAR PARK OF THE PSR2 DISTRIBUTION CENTER” (you can read the full document by clicking on this link).
Amazon therefore wants to realizeinside the car park of one of its distribution centres, a platform to manage the loading, take-off and landing operations of its delivery dronesas can also be seen from this vegetable garden photo, present inside the environmental impact screening documentationwhich the company previously sent to the municipality of San Salvo (you can download the compressed folder at this link).
At what point is Amazon Prime Air in Italy
We know that from a regulatory point of view, Amazon’s certification is still underway with ENAC as LUC operator (Light Unmanned Certificate) with risk level SAIL IVwhile from an operational point of view the drones that will carry out the deliveries are of the type MK30a rain-resistant hexacopter model that can transport packages weighing up to 2.3 kgfor a radius of 12 km and flying to a maximum height of 120 metres. For more information on Amazon’s delivery drones, you can read this dedicated page.
In short, if everything goes well, it is plausible that Amazon will succeed in its aim inaugurate the drone delivery service in Italy by 2024, as announced, although initially only for some citizens living near San Salvo. Also considering the news of recent days on U-ELCOME project by Telespaziowhich aims at transport of medicines via drone in the Fucino area and the Sirente and Velino Mountains Natural Regional Park in the province of L’AquilaAbruzzo seems truly projected towards a leading role in the development of innovative optical services Advanced Air Mobility.
