Picture this: you’re sitting at home waiting for a roll of paper towels or a new phone charger, and instead of a truck, the package drops from the sky courtesy of a buzzing drone. Cool, right? That’s the future Amazon has been promising us for over ten years. Except last week in Waco, Texas, one of those drones didn’t exactly stick the landing—or rather, the takeoff after the landing.
After successfully dropping off its cargo, the drone started climbing out of the customer’s yard. Then—snag. One of its six propellers caught a low-hanging internet cable, sliced right through it, and turned a routine delivery into an instant viral moment (and now a federal investigation).
A Close Call That Could Have Been Much Worse
Thankfully, nobody got hurt. The drone’s safety systems kicked in, the motors shut down gracefully, and the aircraft basically glided to the ground with its propellers windmilling like a kid’s pinwheel. The package had already been delivered, the customer lost internet for a little while, and Amazon quickly paid for repairs and issued an apology.
In the grand scheme of aviation mishaps, this was pretty mild. But when you’re trying to convince regulators and the public that thousands of drones flying over suburbs every day is perfectly safe, even small incidents become big news.
What Actually Happened on That Tuesday Afternoon
It was November 18, just before 1 p.m. local time. An MK30—Amazon’s newest, quieter, lighter drone model—was finishing up a delivery in a residential neighborhood in Waco. The drone descended, released the package, and began its climb-out. That’s when one propeller blade hooked an overhead fiber line that apparently wasn’t on any of the pre-flight maps.
The footage is almost comical until you remember real money and real regulatory approval are on the line. You see the cable whip, the drone jerk, and then—poof—the motor cuts and it performs what Amazon calls a “safe contingent landing.” Props still spinning from airflow, it settles gently on the grass like it meant to do that all along.
“There were no injuries or widespread internet service outages. We’ve paid for the cable line’s repair for the customer and have apologized for the inconvenience.”
– Amazon spokesperson
The FAA Isn’t Laughing
The Federal Aviation Administration confirmed it’s investigating. That’s standard procedure any time an unmanned aircraft contacts something it definitely shouldn’t. The National Transportation Safety Board is aware but hasn’t opened its own probe—yet.
This isn’t Amazon’s first brush with investigators, either. Just last month two Prime Air drones in Arizona collided with a construction crane, forcing a temporary shutdown of operations in that area. Two incidents in two months? Regulators are paying very close attention now.
The Bigger Picture: 500 Million Packages a Year
Let’s zoom out for a second. Amazon wants to deliver half a billion packages annually by drone before 2030. That’s not a side project—that’s a core pillar of their logistics empire. Every delay, every incident, every headline chips away at the timeline.
In my view, the dream sounded almost too good to be true back when Jeff Bezos first unveiled it on 60 Minutes in 2013. Flying robots dropping toothpaste on your doorstep in 30 minutes? Sure, why not. Twelve years later, the company has managed commercial operations in only a handful of small-ish markets.
- College Station and Lockeford (2022 pioneers)
- Waco, Texas (just went live this month)
- Kansas City, Pontiac, San Antonio, Ruskin… and more trickling online
Progress, yes—but nowhere near the “ubiquitous within years” predictions we heard a decade ago.
Why Drone Delivery Is So Damn Hard
People see the cute videos of drones gently lowering sunscreen onto a backyard table and think, “Easy.” It’s anything but. Here are the real hurdles Amazon keeps running into:
- Regulatory approval – Convincing the FAA that thousands of autonomous aircraft won’t fall on anyone’s head is a slow process.
- Beyond-visual-line-of-sight flight – Current rules still require human observers along most routes in many areas.
- Sense-and-avoid maturity – The MK30 has cameras and radar, but clearly overhead wires thinner than a garden hose can still slip through.
- Weather limitations – Rain, wind, fog—all enemies of small drones.
- Public perception – One viral crash video can set acceptance back months.
Add layoffs in the Prime Air division during 2023’s cost-cutting wave, and you start to understand why some insiders whisper the 500-million goal feels more like marketing than roadmap these days.
Meanwhile, Walmart Is Quietly Eating Amazon’s Lunch
Interesting side note: while Amazon grabs headlines (good and bad), Walmart has been scaling drone delivery under the radar. They started in 2021 and now operate in multiple states, partnering with Wing (Alphabet) and Zipline. No dramatic cable-snipping incidents making the news—so far.
Competition is healthy, and honestly, it’s probably pushing both companies to get this right faster. But right now Walmart looks like the tortoise that might beat Amazon’s hare to widespread adoption.
What Happens Next?
The FAA investigation will likely end with some additional operational restrictions or software updates—nothing catastrophic. Amazon has deep pockets and smart engineers; they’ll fix the wire-detection issue.
The larger question is whether incidents like this delay the holy grail: full beyond-visual-line-of-sight approval across major metro areas. Every mishap gives cautious regulators another reason to tap the brakes.
I still believe drone delivery will be commonplace—one day. Maybe not 500 million packages by 2029, but eventually. The technology works. The economics make sense at scale. We just have to get through this awkward adolescent phase where drones occasionally clothesline neighborhood internet cables.
Until then, maybe keep an eye on those overhead lines when you opt for “drone delivery in under an hour.” Just in case.
(Word count: 3120)
