Amazon.com Inc.’s share price down, seeks U.S. regulatory authorities’ permission to test its drones outdoors

Amazon.com Inc. sought permission from US aviation regulatory authorities to expand the testing of its drones outside the companys research laboratory in a letter published on a government website. According to the web retailers statement, it has set a goal of delivering packages weighing less than 5 pounds (2.3 kilograms) with automated aircraft that will be able to reach speeds of more than 50 miles (80 kilometres) per hour.

Amazon.com Inc. said in its letter, which was signed by the Vice President for Global Public Policy of the company – Mr. Paul Misener and cited by Bloomberg: “We are rapidly experimenting and iterating on Prime Air inside our next generation research and development lab in Seattle.” The company also said: “Amazon would prefer to keep the focus, jobs, and investment of this important research and development initiative in the United States by conducting private research and development operations outdoors near Seattle.”

Now the company is seeking the approval of the U.S. regulators to provide it with permission to test its prototype drones outdoors. The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) was asked by Amazon for an exception of the rules for commercial enterprises to test unmanned vehicles outside.

The letter of the company was sent at a time, when the FAA revealed that it is preparing new rules that will be focused on loosening the tight regulations related to the commercial use of drones.

The project of using drones to deliver packages to customers is called Amazon Prime Air. According to information provided by Amazon.com Inc., the company is seeking to develop a system that would be able to deliver packages in 30 minutes or even less. This is a step that is aiming to not only expand the companys reach on the market, but also prove its concern to its client and help it develop a more-customer friendly delivery system.

As reported by the Financial Times, the company also wrote in its letter: “One day, seeing Amazon Prime Air will be as normal as seeing mail trucks on the road today.”

Amazon.com Inc. was 0.62% down to close at 327.92 dollars per share yesterday, marking a one-year change of +12.17%. According to the information published on CNN Money, the 40 analysts offering 12-month price forecasts for Amazon.com Inc. have a median target of 422.50, with a high estimate of 500.00 and a low estimate of 330.00. The median estimate represents a +28.84% increase from the last price of 327.92.