Amazon Revives Prime Air Drone Delivery in California After Two-Year Hiatus

Amazon is reviving its Prime Air drone delivery service in California after a nearly two-year hiatus. The company has announced plans to launch drone deliveries from its distribution center in Tracy, which will serve customers within a 7.5-mile radius.

The new site marks the first time Amazon has returned to California since it closed its Lockeford facility in April 2024. The Lockeford location was Amazon's first US drone delivery site and operated for about two years before shutting down due to scalability issues with its rural, per-customer model.

Tracy, on the other hand, will utilize an existing warehouse as a hub for the drone deliveries. The service area will be the same 175-square-mile circle drawn around every MK30 location, allowing drones to fly up to 7.5 miles from the building with packages of up to 5 pounds aboard.

According to Erik Robertson, Prime Air's regional operations manager for the West, the Tracy launch is part of Amazon's ongoing effort to improve its drone delivery program. 'Every flight that we take starts with safety,' he emphasized.