Amazon pulls back on drone delivery in Italy, citing regulatory issues

Amazon has paused plans to initiate the delivery of goods by drones in Italy, saying that despite successful testing, broader business regulatory issues in the country remain in the way.

"Following a strategic review, we have decided to stop our commercial drone delivery plans in Italy", Amazon said in a statement to Reuters.

"Despite positive engagement and progress with Italian aerospace regulators, the broader business regulatory framework in the country does not, at this time, support our longer-term objectives for this program," Amazon added.

Referencing the decision, the Italian civil aviation ENAC called it unexpected. In a statement, it added that the move was motivated by company policy, linked to "recent financial events involving the Group".

In 2024, it was announced that Amazon had completed its first successful delivery by drone in Italy.

Italian regulators ENAC and ENAV authorized Amazon to perform the test in San Salvo, a town in the central Abruzzo region.

During the test, Amazon used its MK30 drone, which can carry up to five pounds of packages through light rain, according to The Verge.

According to earlier statements, Amazon was planning to launch its Prime Air delivery service commercially in Italy in 2025 – but the launch was subject to regulatory approvals, which, clearly, remain an obstacle.

In 2023, Amazon also announced plans to expand its drone delivery to the UK, planning for initial flights to start from its fulfillment center in Darlington. This, however, is also pending authorization from the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) to fly drones in the airspace.

Amazon started drone deliveries in the US in 2022, but the roll-out is still limited as testing continues. There were certain instances of Amazon drone crashes – for example, in November, Amazon faced a federal probe when one of its delivery drones downed an internet cable in central Texas.