In June, the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) outlined its long-overdue regulations for companies that want to use drones in their businesses. While the regulations were comprehensive, they stipulated that drones have to be flown by humans, and pilots have to be able to see their drones—keep them in their line of sight—the entire time they’re flying. That essentially prohibits the possibility for drones deliveries (unless a pilot rides along in a car as their drone flies along), because there would be no practical way of delivering goods very far. That being said, the FAA has hinted that it is open to adapting the rules for new commercial uses in the future, with FAA administrator Michael Huerta calling these regulations just a “first step.”

Flirtey and 7-Eleven’s flight was completed under the watchful eye of the FAA, and clearly shows that the administration is still working through the feasibility of autonomous hordes of drones flying through US skies delivering us whatever we want, whenever we want it. “This is just the first step in our collaboration with 7-Eleven,” Flirey CEO Matt Sweeney said in a release. “Today is a giant leap toward a not-too-distant future where we are delivering you convenience on demand.”

Flirtey’s drone with the precious cargo.
Flirtey’s drone with the precious cargo.
Image: Flirtey

It remains to be see just how not-too-distant that future is. “This delivery marks the first time a retailer has worked with a drone delivery company to transport immediate consumables from store to home,” Jesus Delgado-Jenkins, a vice president at 7-Eleven said in the release. “In the future, we plan to make the entire assortment in our stores available for delivery to customers in minutes.”

And as TechCrunch points out, 7-Eleven already partners with delivery service Postmates, so it’s really not that difficult to get on-demand convenience-store donuts today, if that’s something you’re really hankering after.

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