Amazon Envisions Massive Flying Warehouse As Drone Base | Aero-News Network
Aero-News Network
RSS icon RSS feed
podcast icon MP3 podcast
Subscribe Aero-News e-mail Newsletter Subscribe

Airborne Unlimited -- Most Recent Daily Episodes

Episode Date

Airborne-Monday

Airborne-Tuesday

Airborne-Wednesday Airborne-Thursday

Airborne-Friday

Airborne On YouTube

Airborne-Unlimited-07.07.25

Airborne-NextGen-07.08.25

AirborneUnlimited-07.09.25

Airborne-FlightTraining-07.10.25

AirborneUnlimited-07.11.25

Tue, Jan 03, 2017

Amazon Envisions Massive Flying Warehouse As Drone Base

Patent Awarded For 'Airborne Fulfillment Center'

The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office has awarded a patent to Amazon for massive flying warehouses that will be a "mothership" for drone deliveries.

The "Airborne Fulfillment Center" (AFC) would be based on an airship or blimp that would loiter at an altitude of about FL450. It would be stocked with many popular products.

CNBC reports that, according to the patent application, when a customer places an order, the item would be automatically loaded onto a drone, which would then fly ... or mostly glide ... down to make the delivery. "When the UAV departs the AFC, it may descend from the high altitude of the AFC using little or no power other than to guide the UAV towards its delivery destination and/or to stabilize the UAV as it descends," according to the patent filing.

The airship would be refueled and restocked by a shuttle, a smaller aircraft that could dock with the larger AFC.

Amazon said in the filing that uses might include flight over sporting events where customers might want to order team merchandise. They could also be used for advertising, like a giant billboard.

Of course, all if this is pretty much pie-in-the-sky (so to speak). The entire scheme would need regulatory approval from the FAA.

The patent was awarded in April, but Amazon just made it public this week, along with its patent to protect delivery drones from bows and arrows.

(Image from patent filing)

FMI: www.amazon.com

Advertisement

More News

NTSB Final Report: Aviat A1

Airplane Bounced About 3 Ft Then Touched Back Down And Then, With No Brakes Applied, The Airplane Began Veering To The Left Analysis: The pilot entered the airport traffic pattern >[...]

ANN's Daily Aero-Linx (07.08.25)

Aero Linx: British Microlight Aircraft Association (BMAA) The primary focus within all aviation activity is SAFETY. In all aspects of our sport SAFETY must come first, whether it b>[...]

Classic Aero-TV: Fly Corvair’s Reliable Engine Alternative

From SnF25 (YouTube Edition): William Wynne Builds Practical Aircraft Engines on the Corvair Platform Seeking an affordable alternative to the traditional aircraft engine options, >[...]

ANN FAQ: Contributing To Aero-TV

How To Get A Story On Aero-TV News/Feature Programming How do I submit a story idea or lead to Aero-TV? If you would like to submit a story idea or lead, please contact Jim Campbel>[...]

Classic Aero-TV: CiES Fuel-Quantity and e-Throttle Systems Praised

From 2023 (YouTube Edition): Bridge of CiES CiES Inc. is a Bend, Oregon-based designer and manufacturer of modular embedded aircraft systems and sensors. The company’s fuel-l>[...]

blog comments powered by Disqus



Advertisement

Advertisement

Podcasts

Advertisement

© 2007 - 2025 Web Development & Design by Pauli Systems, LC