Additional Coverage:
Amazon Drones Crash Into Crane in Tolleson, Prompting Federal Investigation
Tolleson, AZ – Federal investigators are currently examining a collision involving two Amazon Prime Air delivery drones that struck a construction crane in Tolleson, a city located west of Phoenix, on Wednesday morning.
The incident occurred in a commercial area near 96th Avenue and Roosevelt Street, as confirmed by Tolleson police. Both the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) have initiated separate investigations into the crash.
The NTSB announced via social media that it is “investigating the collision Wednesday of two Amazon Prime Air delivery UAS (drones) into a crane in Tolleson, Arizona.” The FAA identified the drones involved as two MK30 models, confirming they “collided with the boom of a crane.” Fortunately, no injuries were reported in connection with the incident.
Following the crash, Amazon temporarily paused drone deliveries in Arizona on Thursday but announced that operations would resume Friday. Amazon spokesperson Terrence Clark stated that the company is fully cooperating with authorities and has already completed its own internal review.
“Safety is our top priority, and we’ve completed our own internal review of this incident and are confident that there wasn’t an issue with the drones or the technology that supports them,” Clark said. He added that Amazon has since “introduced additional processes like enhanced visual landscape inspections to better monitor for moving obstructions such as cranes.”
The official cause of the crash is still under investigation. This incident comes at a time when the U.S. Transportation Department (DOT) is considering new rules that would allow commercial drones to fly beyond the visual line of sight of their operators, a move officials believe is essential for expanding drone-based services like package deliveries.
As of Friday, the NTSB, DOT, Amazon, and Tolleson police had not immediately responded to requests for additional comment regarding the ongoing investigation.