Amazon Prime Air Drone Drops 5-Pound Package Into Houston Pool as Service Targets 500 Cities
Updated
Updated · New York Magazine · Aug 22
Amazon Prime Air Drone Drops 5-Pound Package Into Houston Pool as Service Targets 500 Cities
3 articles · Updated · New York Magazine · Aug 22
Summary
A Prime Air drone dropped a Richmond, Texas, customer’s order into her swimming pool about 20 minutes after she placed it; the wet package was retrieved and the contents were undamaged.
Amazon’s same-day drone service uses an 80-pound MK30 hexacopter and is already offered in parts of 11 U.S. cities, with the company saying Friday it expects Prime Air to reach nearly 500 cities and towns by year-end.
The viral video also highlighted complaints about the service’s loud noise and rotor downwash, which can blow nearby objects—and sometimes the delivered package itself—after drop-off.
Amazon said such incidents are extremely rare and that it uses failed deliveries to improve the system, but the customer told Business Insider the noise would likely keep her from choosing drone delivery again.
The mishap lands as drone delivery expands beyond Amazon, with Walmart operating in five metro areas and DoorDash launching its own service, raising broader questions about neighborhood disruption as adoption grows.