Robert Thayer looked up from his computer as a churning weedwacker-like sound interrupted the silence of his west Omaha home. As he noticed his grass swaying, he thought: That must be the drone.

The tech worker walked out his front door to find a blue-and-white robot hovering above his yard.

He watched with amusement as the drone dropped a brown box containing the allergy medicine he had ordered 90 minutes earlier. Then, the machine’s powerful propellers blew the box from his lawn into the street.

“Only the best from Amazon,” Thayer wrote in a Reddit post alongside a video of the delivery.

This summer, suburban Omahans have caught a glimpse into the future of online shopping.

Twelve drones made 6,000 trips from Amazon’s hulking Papillion warehouse in July and August to deliver packages up to 7.5 miles away. The facility is one of 11 U.S. locations launching the autonomous robots. By year’s end, Amazon anticipates delivering to 500 cities and towns.

Some living in the new drone zone see the technology as a novel solution to speed up package delivery and reduce traffic on local roads.

Others say noise from the drones disrupts neighborhoods and wildlife habitats while providing little benefit. The tech will eventually cost people jobs, said Bryan Patel, vice president of Teamsters Local 554 and a representative for United Postal Service members.

Three Amazon delivery drones take flight from an Amazon warehouse on Sept. 9 in Papillion. Photo by Lily Smith/Flatwater Free Press

“It makes me want to throw up a little bit,” Patel said. “I don’t like it at all. I view it as corporate greed. Amazon makes billions of dollars every year, and it’s never enough.”

Amazon doesn’t believe that will happen, said Erik Robertson, the regional operations manager for Prime Air. For Amazon, these drones — autonomous robots that are 78 lbs., more than 5 feet tall and capable of traveling faster than 70 mph — offer a solution to emergency necessities like Tylenol for a sick child or last-minute purchases like art supplies to finish a school project.

“To finally bring this technology that our teams have designed into fruition, it’s amazing,” Robertson said.

As one of Prime Air’s early customers, Thayer feels conflicted about the new drone service.

Robert Thayer took a video of an Amazon drone dropping a package onto his west Omaha lawn. The box was then blown into the street by the machine’s powerful propellers. Video courtesy of Robert Thayer

“I’ve been in the technology industry for most of my career, so that side of me is like, ‘This is really cool,’” Thayer said. “But the idea of just driving around and seeing drones flying all over delivering stuff is kind of dystopian.”

Not science fiction

In late 2013, Jeff Bezos promised CBS’ “60 Minutes” he had a big surprise to unveil. The Amazon CEO led the camera crew down a white, windowless hallway and opened the door to an office simply titled “AV Room.”

“Oh, my God!” Charlie Rose exclaimed when he saw two helicopter-like robots sitting on a table. Bezos showed a video of conveyor belts, packages and drones lifting off into the sky.

“I know this looks like science fiction,” Bezos said. “It’s not.”

An Amazon delivery drone flies over Prairie Queen Disc Golf Course on Sept. 9 in Papillion. Photo by Lily Smith/Flatwater Free Press

CBS reported Bezos wanted his drones airborne in as little as four years. But federal regulation had to catch up.

Congress first ordered the Federal Aviation Administration to integrate drones into air regulations in 2012. After years of lobbying by Amazon, the agency allowed the company to launch pilot projects on the West Coast and in Texas.

In the meantime, the company honed the technology, improving the batteries and AI-backed “computer vision” systems that allow the drones to fly safely and deliver packages with accuracy, said Paul Armstrong, a London-based tech adviser who writes a weekly newsletter about Amazon.

Recently, Amazon applied to deliver up to 1,000 packages a day in several U.S. metros, including Omaha, Kansas City, Detroit and Dallas.

Papillion made the early cut because of Amazon’s great relationship with the city, which includes the company donating money to local schools, Robertson said. In 2023, the company also built an automated warehouse that uses robots to move items.

Strategically, Papillion is more of a testing ground than a “showcase city” for the company, Armstrong said.

“If Prime Air can operate reliably through wind, snow, storms and temperature swings, Amazon learns far more than it would from another carefully controlled launch in a warm, easy market,” Armstrong said.

The main approval Amazon required came from the FAA. Its June application to operate here mostly concerns potential environmental effects, which the company says would be largely insignificant. The FAA did not respond to emails and calls requesting comment.

Drone deliveries are approved within a 7.5-mile radius of Amazon’s Papillion warehouse. The area encompasses a large swath of suburban Omaha including Papillion, La Vista, Millard and Gretna. Graphic by Hanscom Park Studio

The flights didn’t require any action from the Papillion City Council or the Sarpy County Board, officials said.

Don Kelly, who represents Papillion on the County Board, said Amazon has been a good partner. He still has questions about the potential for accidents and how many drones will be buzzing around suburban Omaha airspace, but there’s no use fighting the future, he said.

“Welcome to the 21st century,” Kelly said. “It’s tech. It’s here. America innovates, and we’re lucky to be living in America.”

Sharing the skies

Simon Hoey was puzzled when he noticed Amazon drones flying over Chalco Hills Recreation Area. The park’s rules say drones are “strictly prohibited,” but Hoey counted five in the sky during a walk around the lake a few weeks ago.

A self-described “bird nerd,” Hoey worried the drones would disturb the bald eagles that nest seasonally in the park, which lies roughly a mile from the Papillion warehouse.

The Reader

Message History

Delivery option(s)