Amazon Prime Air to expand drone delivery to 500 US cities

Amazon’s Prime Air drone delivery service plans to expand to nearly 500 cities and towns across the US by the end of 2026, a sixfold increase from its current footprint.

The expansion will bring drone delivery to communities with tens of millions of customers. Prime Air currently operates from 11 sites across 10 US metro areas in seven states, including Arizona, Florida, Kansas, Louisiana, Michigan, Nebraska and Texas.

Amazon plans to launch Prime Air soon in the Chicago, Syracuse, Cleveland, Atlanta and Boise metro areas, with more communities expected to be added later this year.

“Customers already turn to Amazon for fast Same- and Next-Day Delivery, and Prime Air provides them an even speedier option when they need it, with deliveries in as fast as 30 minutes,” said David Carbon, Vice President of Amazon Prime Air.

“We've already delivered hundreds of thousands of packages to customers by drone this year, and by the end of 2026 we plan to reach customers in nearly 500 cities and towns,” Carbon said.

Prime Air offers millions of items for drone delivery, including groceries, electronics, cosmetics, medications and household products. Nearly all items weighing 5 pounds or less that fit in a large shoebox can be delivered by drone, with more than 60% of the items customers most frequently purchase eligible for the service.

Orders can arrive in as fast as 30 minutes, while most orders arrive around 60 minutes after checkout.

The expansion follows additional permissions granted to Prime Air by the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) in 2024 to operate drones beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS). The approval allows Amazon to serve more customers and expand its drone delivery operations.

Amazon developed an onboard detect-and-avoid system as part of its BVLOS strategy. The company submitted engineering information and test data to the FAA and conducted flight demonstrations with FAA inspectors, including flights around planes, helicopters and a hot air balloon, to demonstrate that its drones could navigate safely.

The FAA approval allowed Amazon to expand its delivery area in College Station, Texas, making more customers eligible for drone delivery. Amazon also said at the time that drones would later be integrated into its delivery network and operate from facilities next to its same-day delivery sites.

Prime Air currently holds FAA Part 135 certification, the framework used for commercial air carriers. Its drones use onboard cameras and sensors for navigation and obstacle detection, while the Detect-and-Avoid system monitors the surrounding airspace and allows the drones to make real-time safety decisions during flight.

The drones are fully electric and designed to operate in light rain and a range of temperatures. Each Prime Air site currently serves an area of approximately 175 square miles.