Amazon made its first public demonstration of a flying drone delivery in the United States this week.
The company showed off its Prime Air delivery drone by transporting bottles of sunscreen at its invite-only MARS conference in Palm Springs, Calif., on Monday. Video of the demonstration was posted to YouTube on Friday.
Last year, the company performed its first drone delivery in the U.K., where it has an agreement with the government to test its drones. Widespread drone delivery has yet to take off in the U.S., where FAA regulations require that drones be within sight of their pilot. The first FAA-approved flying drone delivery happened only two years ago, in July 2015, when a drone brought medical supplies to a rural health clinic in Virginia.
This week’s demonstration brings the company “one step closer to making 30-minute package delivery by drone a reality,” Amazon Prime Air vice president Gur Kimchi said in a statement sent to the Verge. He said this week’s delivery took place “with the assistance of the FAA.”
