Amazon.com Inc. on Dec. 7 made its first Prime Air delivery, which was completely autonomous without any involvement from a human pilot.
The delivery took 13 minutes, according to a video posted by Amazon Prime Air. Amazon introduced the trial for customers living in the Cambridge area of the U.K., currently working with only two customers. The company plans to expand the service to other customers living near the Prime Air fulfillment center located nearby.
Customers can choose from various items ranging from tech gadgets to pet food. After an order is received, an electrically powered drone goes down a track and then flies off carrying the customer's ordered item. The GPS-guided drone flies below 400 feet and carries packages up to five pounds. Customers receive their packages within 30 minutes of placing orders.
The company plans use the data it accumulates during the beta test along with customer feedback to expand the service over time.