Government, Business, Technology, Safety

NTSB Cites Lithium Battery Fire in Deadly Crash

A speeding teenage driver caused the fatal crash of a Tesla Inc. vehicle in Florida in 2018 and the subsequent fire in the electric car’s battery contributed to the severity of his injuries, a federal investigation concluded.

Alan Levin | Bloomberg News
December 20, 2019
Government, Business

Daimler to Pay $20 Million Penalty Over Mercedes Recall Lapses

Daimler AG’s Mercedes Benz has agreed to pay as much as $20 million in penalties for violations of how it operated its vehicle recall program.

Alan Levin | Bloomberg News
December 18, 2019
Business, Technology, Autonomous

Alphabet Unveils App to Provide Air-Traffic Control for Drones

The company that brought you free digital maps and e-mail wants to do the same thing for your drone.

Alan Levin | Bloomberg News
July 16, 2019
Government, Business, Technology, Equipment

Uber Tries to Steer Its Vision of Flying Cars Through Regulators

Uber Technologies Inc. is bringing its vision of a Jetsons’-like future of battery-powered flying vehicles for the masses to Washington, where it will have to persuade regulators to approve this new model for how aviation works. The company opened its two-day Uber Elevate Summit 2019 on June 11.

Alan Levin | Bloomberg News
June 11, 2019
Government, Business, Technology, Logistics, Autonomous

Amazon Poised to Test Drone Deliveries Powered by Artificial Intelligence

Amazon.com Inc. has unveiled a revolutionary new drone — part helicopter and part science-fiction aircraft — that the company expects to use for test deliveries of toothpaste and other household goods starting within months.

Alan Levin | Bloomberg News
June 6, 2019
Government, Business, Technology, Logistics, Autonomous

Alphabet’s Drone Delivery Business Cleared for Takeoff by FAA

An offshoot of Alphabet Inc.’s Google has become the first drone operator to receive government approval as an airline, an important step that gives it the legal authority to begin dropping products to actual customers.

Alan Levin | Bloomberg News
April 23, 2019
Government, Business, Logistics

TSA Begins to Feel Squeeze From Government Shutdown

The Transportation Security Administration plans to begin closing a handful of security checkpoints at airports around the United States as soon as this weekend in response to staff shortages triggered by a partial federal government shutdown now in its third week.

Alan Levin | Bloomberg News
January 11, 2019
Business, Technology, Equipment

FedEx, Alphabet, Uber Win Drone Sweepstakes; Amazon Left Out

At Memphis International Airport, drones may soon be inspecting planes and delivering airplane parts for FedEx Corp. In Reno, Nev., they will test airlifting life-saving defibrillators to patients. And customers in Virginia could be awaiting Alphabet Inc.’s flying devices to get goods they ordered.

Alan Levin | Bloomberg News
May 10, 2018
Business, Technology

DOT Unveils Drone Tests Ranging From Deliveries to Farming

A who’s who of technology and aviation companies won U.S. approval to push the edge of the envelope in drone flights, from testing people’s tolerance for delivery devices hovering over their rooftops to ensuring farmers’ drones won’t hit crop dusters.

Alan Levin | Bloomberg News
May 9, 2018
Government, Safety

Inaction on Sleep Apnea Draws Ire of NTSB

Just months after U.S. rail and highway regulators said they were withdrawing plans to screen truckers and engineers for a dangerous sleep disorder, accident investigators believe that it contributed to two New York-area transit crashes.

Alan Levin | Bloomberg News
February 6, 2018