Delivery drones are officially landing in San Antonio yards this year. But despite Amazon touting a roll out in one of the largest cities in the U.S., it covers a very small area – and most of it’s not even technically in San Antonio. So, what are the odds of actually getting a drone-delivered package in the Alamo City?
Basically, the odds are slim. While Amazon packages have been dropped by flying bots since November, it’s confined to areas within 7 to 8 miles of the fulfillment centers on the Northeast Side of the city.
“We announced back in November that we began drone delivery service in San Antonio,” an Amazon spokesperson told MySA, attaching a statement noting Prime Air is operational within a less than 10-mile radius of a fulfillment center in town.
While the online retailer says customers can now “receive millions of items through drone delivery,” it seems far more limited in practice. MySA entered several ZIP codes. A small stretch between the towns of Kirby and Martinez seems to be the only area that doesn’t come with a “not available in your area” message. But even those areas weren’t serviceable.
Over several hours across two days, every attempt to make a drone delivery (in the very limited areas where it is) always resulted in the same message halting our efforts: “Drone delivery is high demand – check back soon for availability.”
MySA asked Amazon about expanding drone delivery in the San Antonio area and how big the rollout is, but the company didn’t provide answers.
While the scale of this new Amazon delivery method may be limited, it’s certainly taking place. Folks shared several videos with MySA with packages dropping from the sky (OK, more like a few feet off the ground) in neighborhoods on the Eastside of San Antonio. For those able to secure a drone, they’re able to deliver items weighing 5 pounds or less.
Alternative delivery methods may be key for Amazon as one of the largest package delivery companies in the country, UPS, cuts its Amazon delivery services in half. By the end of last year, UPS had already cut back Amazon package deliveries by 1 million a day. They plan to double that reduction in the next six months.