For the past 18 months, Project Wing, an offshoot of Google’s parent company Alphabet, has been trialling drone delivery of food and drinks, medication and locally-made coffee and chocolate.
The aviation watchdog confirmed on Tuesday it had signed off on the scheme. The Casa spokesman Peter Gibson said the safety of the drones, traffic management system, maintenance, drone pilot training and operational plans have been examined.
“All those safety issues have been assessed so there are no risks to people on the ground, property or aircraft in the sky,” Gibson told Guardian Australia.
He said the approval has been granted with strict conditions including daylight operating hours.
The drones are banned from crossing over major roads and there’s a minimum distance they have to maintain from people on the ground.
During the trial, noise from the unmanned aircraft upset some nearby residents who claimed it could be heard through double-glazed windows.
Gibson said CASA did consider noise issues as part of the approval process.
The drone delivery service is expected to start in the suburbs of Crace, Palmerston and Franklin in the coming weeks, before expanding into Harrison and Gungahlin.
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