(CNN) — Ice fishers in Minnesota are reeling from a recent FAA decision prohibiting beer delivery by drone.
Local brewery Lakemaid was testing a new drone delivery system to airlift frosty cases of beer to fishermen holed up in ice shacks on Mille Lacs Lake. After spotting a Lakemaid YouTube video that went up last week of one of the unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) on a test run, the Federal Aviation Administration contacted Lakemaid and told the company to stop.
Unfortunately for Lakemaid fans and anyone else dreading a walk to the corner store, it’s currently against the law to fly drones for commercial purposes or above 400 feet in the United States. The FAA is working on a comprehensive set of rules and regulations that will pave the way for commercial drone flight, but the legislation won’t be ready until at least 2015 and drones might not be in the skies until 2017.
Until then, thirsty fishermen must obtain their beverages through old-fashioned terrestrial delivery methods.
