Any other guesses? No?
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The “milestone delivery”, as the drone company called the stunt, took place in Reno, Nevada, and involved a Flirtey drone successfully transporting a cargo of Slurpees, a chicken sandwich, donuts, hot coffee and candy to a private residence in the city. And 7-Eleven low-key got it done before Amazon, which was granted permission to start testing drones for delivery this year. The convenience-store chain partnered with Reno-based drone delivery startup Flirtey for the occasion.
The two companies have plans to expand their drone delivery tests, said 7-Eleven executive vice president an chief merchandising officer Jesus H. Delgado-Jenkins.
The timetable will largely depend on how USA regulations on flying drones shape up, however; TechCrunch notes that legislation passed in Congress earlier this month “requires the FAA to develop drone delivery rules”. In response to the delivery, the Nevada Governor Brian Sandoval commended Flirtey for its innovative technological vision that would secure Nevada’s role in being at the forefront of the UAV (Unmanned Aerial Vehicles) industry. The flight wasn’t far – the family lived within a mile of their 7-Eleven store. He declined to put a specific date on the launch of such a service, citing a shifting regulatory environment. “We look forward to working with Flirtey to deliver to our customers exactly what they need, whenever and wherever they need it”.
The plucky company has been patiently awaiting the final changes to USA law that will see new legislation for the widespread use of drones in regular commercial deliveries. The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) first approved the delivery order.
Flirtey’s CEO Matt Sweeney said, “When I moved to the US two years ago, only one company had a 333 exemption to do this and that was in the Arctic!”
Indeed, broad changes are ahead for the drones industry in the U.S.
In response to the possibility of drone deliveries being made more commonplace in the future, the FAA will issue new laws and regulations to allow small, autonomous aircraft such as drones to operate in the airspace.
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And the FAA Reauthorization Act of 2016, which passed both houses this month, requires the FAA to develop drone delivery rules, and to conduct research on “BVOS” or beyond the visual line of sight flying of drones.
