Plans to run UK test flights of Amazon’s Prime Air drone delivery service in Cambridge have been branded “barking mad” by the the managing director of a local flying club. News of jobs running Amazon Prime Air test flights emerged last week.
Terry Holloway, managing director of Cambridge Aero Club, told the Cambridge News that he had to check his calendar to make sure it wasn’t April Fool’s Day when he heard the news.
Holloway continued: “It makes no sense to me, a barking mad idea. From a legislative point of view the Civil Aviation Authority rules as they currently exist mean it’s just totally unfeasible to even consider doing this.”
The local newspaper claims “safety fears have been raised about having unmanned aircraft flying above the city and dropping off goods to homes – with drones likely to be a tempting target for yobs with airguns.”
As a former resident of Cambridge, I never encountered these mobs of marauding, gun-toting yobs myself.
Amazon says it’s always looking for new talent and that the Cambridge-based Prime Air positions reflect that. Meanwhile the Civil Aviation Authority reiterated that current regulations mean Amazon is a long way from conducting live deliveries over Cambridge or elsewhere in the UK. The airgun mad yobs will have to stick to pigeons for a bit longer.
➤Safety fear over “barking mad” Amazon plan to test parcel-delivery drones over Cambridge [Cambridge News]
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