Google to test delivery drones in the US

A proposed drone delivery service called Project Wing out of Google's parent company Alphabet's moonshot division will test its system at a US site

Google is to begin testing delivery drones in the US as part of a new initiative from the US National Science Foundation.

The proposed drone delivery service called Project Wing out of Google's parent company Alphabet's moonshot division will test its system at a US site said the White House, which announced the news as part of an initiative to push research and safety measures for unmanned flight.

The testing is part of the National Science Foundation's $35 million initiative over the next five years on unmanned flight research and the Department of Interior plans to expand its use of drone flights.

Alphabet's Project Wing UAVs, first revealed in 2014, take off vertically then fly like a fixed-wing plane. While not as maneuverable as standard unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), they can fly further and carry more weight.

The announcement from Google follows close on the heels of Amazon, which itself has hopes to launch its drone delivery service. The company initially expected to have Amazon drones delivering by 2015 but new drone regulations from the Federal Aviation Administration meant Amazon's plans were blocked.

The company announced that a cross-government team supported by the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) gave permission to Amazon to explore three key areas: operations beyond line of sight, obstacle avoidance and flights where one person operates multiple autonomous drones.

This work will help Amazon and the UK government understand how drones can be used safely and reliably in the logistics industry. It will also help identify what operating rules and safety regulations will be needed to help move the drone industry forward.

“Using small drones for the delivery of parcels will improve customer experience, create new jobs in a rapidly growing industry, and pioneer new sustainable delivery methods to meet future demand,” said Paul Misener, Amazon’s vice president of Global Innovation Policy and Communications. “The UK is charting a path forward for drone technology that will benefit consumers, industry and society.”