Online retailer/boundary pusher Amazon (AMZN) has hired a lobbying firm to help advance its drone delivery project.
Politico reports that Amazon Prime Air hired Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld to work on “federal advocacy with regard to testing and operation of [unmanned aerial vehicles] in the US,” according to a lobbying registration filings.
Drone delivery — retail goods delivered via unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) — was first proposed by AMZN CEO Jeff Bezos in December as a way to reach the goal of same-day delivery.
Amazon’s aim is to deliver products to consumers within 30 minutes of an order — via the UAV.
Because the Federal Aviation Administration has yet to establish rules on drone flights for commercial/business use, the push on Capitol Hill is expected to be an interesting one.
The FAA is expected to have a formal rule for drone flights by November.
Lawmakers have already told the FAA it wants rules on flights and drone flight operations to go ahead by September 2015.
In 2013, Amazon spent some $3.5 million on various lobbying firms.
