亚马逊周一宣布，该公司已经获得英国民航局和其他组织的许可，得以在该国测试无人机送货业务。

亚马逊在声明中说，由英国民航局支持的跨部门团队已经允许亚马逊探索三大关键创新：在农村和近郊地区测试超出视线范围的无人机运营；通过测试传感器的性能来确保无人机能够识别并躲避障碍物；让一名操作人员同时操作多台高度自动化的无人机。

这都是为了拓展亚马逊的Prime Air无人机配送业务，这项业务希望在用户下单后30分钟内，通过无人机送货上门。

亚马逊2014年率先向美国监管者提交类似测试活动的监管审批。

事实上，不光亚马逊能够通过这些测试获益，英国政府同样如此。

“我们希望将无人机安全地整合到整个航空系统中，从而促进无人机技术的发展和创新。”英国民航局政策主管蒂姆·约翰逊(Tim Johnson)说，“亚马逊的这些测试将为我们的政策和未来的落实方法提供信息。”

附亚马逊官方声明：

Amazon and UK Government Aim for the Sky with Partnership on Drones

New Program Will Explore the Safe Use of Drones for Delivery

SEATTLE--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jul. 25, 2016-- (NASDAQ:AMZN) – Amazon has today announced a partnership with the UK Government to explore the steps needed to make the delivery of parcels by small drones a reality, allowing Amazon to trial new methods of testing its delivery systems.

A cross-Government team supported by the UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) has provided Amazon with permissions to explore three key innovations: beyond line of sight operations in rural and suburban areas, testing sensor performance to make sure the drones can identify and avoid obstacles, and flights where one person operates multiple highly-automated drones.

“The UK is a leader in enabling drone innovation – we’ve been investing in Prime Air research and development here for quite some time,” said Paul Misener, Amazon’s Vice President of Global Innovation Policy and Communications. “This announcement strengthens our partnership with the UK and brings Amazon closer to our goal of using drones to safely deliver parcels in 30 minutes to customers in the UK and elsewhere around the world.”

This ground-breaking work will help Amazon and the Government understand how drones can be used safely and reliably in the logistics industry. It will also help identify what operating rules and safety regulations will be needed to help move the drone industry forward.

“Using small drones for the delivery of parcels will improve customer experience, create new jobs in a rapidly growing industry, and pioneer new sustainable delivery methods to meet future demand,” said Misener. “The UK is charting a path forward for drone technology that will benefit consumers, industry and society.”

As the UK’s aviation safety regulator, the CAA will be fully involved in this work to explore the potential for safe use of drones beyond line of sight. The outcomes of these tests will help inform the development of future policy and regulation in this area.

“We want to enable the innovation that arises from the development of drone technology by safely integrating drones into the overall aviation system,” said Tim Johnson, CAA Policy Director. “These tests by Amazon will help inform our policy and future approach.”