Amazon has won U.S. federal regulators' approval to test its drone delivery service. The . e-commerce giant hopes to speed packages to . customers through the air - despite public concern over the safety . and privacy implications. The Federal Aviation Administration said on Thursday it had . issued an experimental airworthiness certificate to an Amazon . unit and its prototype drone design, allowing it to conduct . outdoor test flights on private, rural land in Washington state. Scroll down for video . the company must supply monthly data to the regulators, and conduct flights at 400 feet (120 metres) orbelow and in 'visual meteorological conditions,' Amazon is developing aerial vehicles as part of Amazon Prime Air. The aircraft can travel at more than 50mph and carry loads of up to 5 pounds. About 86 percent of Amazon's deliveries are 5 pounds or less, the company said. 'We believe customers will love it, and we are committed to making Prime Air available to customers worldwide as soon as we are permitted to do so,' Amazon has said. The experimental certificate applies to a particular drone . design and Amazon must obtain a new certification for test . flights if it modifies the drone. In return, the company must supply monthly data to the . regulators, and conduct flights at 400 feet (120 metres) or . below and in 'visual meteorological conditions,' according to . the FAA's certificate. The drone operators must also have a private pilots' license . and current medical certification. Amazon Chief Executive Jeff Bezos wants to use drones - . small unmanned aircraft - to deliver packages as part of a . program dubbed 'Prime Air.' The company is developing drones . that can fly at speeds of 50 miles per hour (80 kph), operate . autonomously and sense and avoid objects. Amazon sought permission from the FAA to test drones in . outdoor areas near Seattle, where one of its research and . development labs is working on the technology. The company has . conducted test flights outside the United States, in countries . with looser restrictions. In February, the FAA proposed long-awaited rules to try to . set universal guidelines for drones, addressing growing interest . from both individual and corporations in using unmanned aerial . vehicles. The draft rules, nearly 10 years in the making, still . must undergo public comment and revision before becoming final, . a process expected to take at least a year. Amazon did not immediately respond to requests for comment. It has previously threatened to take its testing outside the US. 'In the absence of a timely approval by the FAA to conduct outdoor testing, we have begun utilizing outdoor testing facilities outside the United States,' Amazon vice president Paul Misener said in a letter to the Federal Aviation Administration. 'These non-US facilities enable us to quickly build and modify our Prime Air vehicles as we construct new designs and make improvements,' he said.
FAA gave go-ahead for trials on private rural land in Washington State . Amazon hope Prime Air service could make deliveries in under 30 minutes .