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Wing: the largest residential drone network in the US, and what the FAA has actually approved
Alphabet's Wing flies Walmart orders in Dallas-Fort Worth, metro Atlanta, Greater Houston, Charlotte and, since July 2026, Central Florida, and says it makes thousands of home deliveries a day. On Oct. 5, 2026 it named Denver and Seattle for 2027, taking the Walmart plan to 19 metros, 14 of them not yet flying. Its FAA filings authorize up to 368 nest locations across five metros, each nest housing up to 24 aircraft with a six-mile radius. This page tracks the authorizations, the markets, the aircraft, and the record.
368
Nests FAA-authorized
DFW 75 · Central FL 150 · Houston 75 · Atlanta 43 · Charlotte 25
5
Metros FAA-authorized
Plus Christiansburg, VA since 2019
14
Metros announced, not flying
Tampa · Jan 2026 four · June 2026 seven · Denver and Seattle, Oct 5, 2026
0
FAA filings for the 14
None on the FAA's public list as of Sept. 24, 2026; Federal Way and Tacoma store filings only
66
Walmart stores flying
Both partners, as of May 2026 (Walmart)
0
US crashes in DroneXL record
Records sweep pending
400
Flights per nest per day
Authorized maximum
0 / 30
Questions answered
Due Sept. 15 · nothing received
The aircraft
Hummingbird 7000W-B and 8000-A · from FAA filings and Wing statements| Aircraft | Wing Hummingbird 7000W-B and 8000-A, hybrid: vertical lift rotors plus fixed-wing cruise |
| Weight | 14 lb (7000W-B) and 24.3 lb (8000-A) at maximum takeoff, per the FAA's national table; filings say under 15 and under 25 |
| Payload | 2.3 to 2.7 lb (7000W-B); 5 to 6.6 lb (8000-A) |
| Aircraft weight per pound of cargo | About 5 lb (7000W-B); about 3 lb (8000-A) |
| Range | About 6 miles from each nest |
| Delivery method | Hovers about 23 ft up and lowers the package on a tether; releases at ground level; never lands off-site |
| Hours | 6 a.m. to 10 p.m.; flights leave the nest 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. (FAA) |
| Nest | Commercial parking lots, typically a Walmart; up to 24 aircraft per nest (FAA), 18 per Wing; autoloaders for remote pickup |
| Flights per nest | Up to 400 per day |
| Recovery system | No parachute in FAA filings; safety case rests on a very light airframe and tethered delivery |
| Noise | FAA sets nests 65 ft from homes at 400 flights a day (120 ft near airports). dBA figures are in Appendix D of the DFW and Central Florida filings; not yet extracted, asked of Wing Sept. 8, unanswered. |
How it compares
| Operator | Aircraft | Empty | Payload | Recovery |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Amazon | MK30 | 77.9 lb | 5 lb | None |
| Zipline | P2 Zip | 55 lb | 8 lb | |
| Wing | Hummingbird 7000W-B / 8000-A | 14 lb / 24.3 lb MTOW | 2.3 to 2.7 lb / 5 to 6.6 lb | Light airframe |
Figures from FAA filings and published interviews.
What Wing has said on the record
Wing says it has completed more than one million commercial deliveries worldwide, that average Walmart delivery time is 23 minutes, and that customers in existing markets order several times a week.
Wing says it is building the largest residential drone delivery network in the US, at thousands of deliveries a day (Sept. 3, 2026). Walmart's own quarter supports the order of magnitude: over 400,000 drone deliveries across both partners in the 89 days to April 30.
On collision behavior and why no parachute: nothing on the record. Thirty written questions sent Sept. 8 went unanswered at the Sept. 15 deadline.
Where it flies
21 sites on the record · 6 approved or operating · 0 in review · 15 announced · 0 incidents in DroneXL's record Wing Solid: operating or FAA-approved Hollow: announced or in FAA review Dashed: former site Black ring: incident in DroneXL's record
Pins are metro-level. Wing's FAA filings authorize a maximum nest count inside a metro and do not list addresses; nests sit in commercial parking lots and are added here site by site from local permits and DroneXL coverage. Charlotte's authorization runs under North Carolina's programmatic EA rather than a standalone filing. Seattle was announced Oct. 5, 2026; its only sites on the record are city filings at two Walmart Supercenters, Federal Way (Aug 2026) and Tacoma (Sept 2026), not FAA authorizations. Bentonville, Arkansas is pinned from a Sept 2025 city permit for a Wing nest at Walmart Store #100; Wing has not announced it and it is not counted among the 14 metros.
Sites, markets and authorized areas
Click a column to sort| Code | Place↑ | State | Detail | Metro / scope | Status | FAA decision | Filing |
|---|
FAA authorizations
Every environmental review and re-evaluation on the FAA's public list| Metro or area | State | Scope | Aircraft | Flights per day | Status | FAA decision | Filing |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Christiansburg | VA | 1 nest; higher pilot-to-aircraft ratio | 15-lb Hummingbird | Not capped in summary | FAA-approved | 2021-12-17 | FAA PDF |
| Frisco and Little Elm | TX | 2 nests | 15-lb Hummingbird | Not capped in summary | 2022-02-09 | FAA PDF | |
| Dallas-Fort Worth | TX | Up to 25 nests, 6-mile radius each | Hummingbird | 400 per nest | 2023-11-08 | FAA PDF | |
| Charlotte | NC | Charlotte Metro operating area; up to 25 hubs (Apr 2025) | Hummingbird (hybrid) | Per NC PEA | 2024-12-18 / 2025-04-29 | FAA PDF | |
| Dallas-Fort Worth (supplemental) | TX | Up to 75 nests; hours to 10 p.m.; remote pickup autoloaders | 7000W-B (<15 lb), 8000-A (<25 lb) | 400 per nest | 2025-04-29 | FAA PDF | |
| Central Florida | FL | Up to 150 nests | 7000W-B, 8000-A (<25 lb) | 400 per nest | 2025-05-30 | FAA PDF | |
| Houston | TX | Up to 75 nests | 7000W-B, 8000-A (<25 lb) | 400 per nest | 2026-08-13 | FAA PDF | |
| Atlanta | GA | Up to 43 nests | 7000W-B, 8000-A (<25 lb) | 400 per nest | 2026-08-18 | FAA PDF | |
| Seattle / Puget Sound | WA | Announced Oct. 5, 2026 for 2027; Federal Way land-use application (Aug 2026) and Tacoma store permit (Sept 2026) in city review | Not stated | Not stated | Announced | No FAA Washington filing under Wing as of Sept. 24, 2026 | Source |
8 FAA actions · 368 nests authorized across five metros plus Christiansburg · 147,200 flights per day on paper at 400 per nest. None of the 14 metros Wing and Walmart have announced since June 2025 has a filing on the FAA's public list as of Sept. 24, 2026; they may proceed under the national programmatic EA signed July 28, 2026. No Washington filing appears under Wing's name either, though Federal Way and Tacoma each have a store filing in front of the city.
Markets in DroneXL's record
Where the aircraft are confirmed flying, and where they are promised| Place | State | Partner | Status | Since / target | Note | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dallas-Fort Worth | TX | Walmart | 2023 | Wing's largest network; shares airspace with Flytrex and Zipline | DroneXL | |
| Metro Atlanta | GA | Walmart | 2025 | Amazon announced Atlanta too, May 2026 | DroneXL | |
| Greater Houston | TX | Walmart | Jan 2026 buildout | First phase of the 270-location plan | DroneXL | |
| Charlotte | NC | Walmart | 2025 | Under NC programmatic EA | DroneXL | |
| Greater Orlando | FL | Walmart | July 2026 | First Florida market; two stores at launch | DroneXL | |
| Seattle / Puget Sound | WA | Walmart | Announced | Announced Oct 5, 2026; target 2027 | Federal Way Walmart Supercenter, 34520 16th Ave. S., master land-use application Aug 2026; Tacoma Walmart Supercenter, 1965 S. Union Ave., city permit filed Sept 2026, city expects issuance by end of Oct; both before any announcement; no FAA Washington filing under Wing; Zipline Seattle draft EA pending since Sept 2025 | DroneXL |
| Cincinnati | OH | Walmart | Announced | Named Jan 11, 2026; testing 2026 | DroneXL | |
| Memphis, New Orleans, Philadelphia, Phoenix, San Diego, SF Bay Area, Salt Lake City | Multi | Walmart | Announced | Announced June 8, 2026 | Part of 270+ locations by 2027 | DroneXL |
| Denver | CO | Walmart | Announced | Announced Oct 5, 2026; target 2027 | Northglenn ordinance (votes Oct 12 and 26); Castle Rock and Parker hub moratoriums since July; Thornton and Longmont pre-applications | DroneXL |
| Tampa | FL | Walmart | Announced | Announced June 2025 | Inside the 150-nest Central Florida FAA authorization | Source |
| Los Angeles, St. Louis, Miami | Multi | Walmart | Announced | Announced Jan 11, 2026 | NRF 2026 announcement with Cincinnati; part of 270+ locations by 2027 | DroneXL |
| Bentonville | AR | Walmart | Announced | City permit Sept 2, 2025 | Nest and Autoloader at Store #100, 406 S. Walton Blvd; one-year permit, no renewal on record; not announced by Wing, no FAA filing, no launch on record | Source |
| Phoenix / Maricopa, AZ | AZ | — | Announced | — | Announced June 8, 2026; Maricopa Walmart lot in pre-application | DroneXL |
| Memphis, TN | TN | — | Announced | — | Announced June 8, 2026 | DroneXL |
| New Orleans, LA | LA | — | Announced | — | Announced June 8, 2026 | DroneXL |
| Philadelphia, PA | PA | — | Announced | — | Announced June 8, 2026 | DroneXL |
| San Diego, CA | CA | — | Announced | — | Announced June 8, 2026 | DroneXL |
| San Francisco Bay Area, CA | CA | — | Announced | — | Announced Mar 23, 2026 (Wing: residential delivery ‘in the coming months’, no cities named); named again June 8, 2026 on the Walmart 2027 list. No Bay Area city named as of Oct 9, 2026; no FAA California filing under Wing. Belvedere (Marin County) passed first reading of a drone-delivery ground-rules ordinance Sept 14, 2026, second reading Oct 12 | DroneXL |
| Salt Lake City, UT | UT | — | Announced | — | Announced June 8, 2026 | DroneXL |
| Los Angeles, CA | CA | — | Announced | — | Named Jan 11, 2026 (NRF) with Walmart; no FAA California filing | DroneXL |
| St. Louis, MO | MO | — | Announced | — | Named Jan 11, 2026 (NRF) with Walmart; no FAA Missouri filing | DroneXL |
| Miami, FL | FL | — | Announced | — | Named Jan 11, 2026 (NRF) with Walmart; outside the Central Florida authorization; no FAA South Florida filing under Wing | DroneXL |
5 rows operating in DroneXL coverage · 17 announced · 0 in review. Walmart's target: more than 270 locations reaching 40 million Americans by 2027. Wing's Oct. 5, 2026 count: nearly 20 metros, three million customers with access today.
What has come down
US incidents in DroneXL's record for WingWhat this column measures: Any documented collision, uncontrolled descent, parachute deployment or off-site landing in US commercial service, from public reporting: DroneXL stories, local news, video, public records. Not NTSB data. Not a rate. The same rule is applied to every operator.
| Date | Location | Type | What happened | Outcome | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No collision, uncontrolled descent or off-site landing in DroneXL's US record for this operator as of Oct. 12, 2026. That is what public reporting shows for an operator delivering to homes; it is not a verified safety statistic, and whether the record is complete is a question for the operator (question 7 of the generic set). Rows are added only with a document or a DroneXL story behind them. | |||||
0 rows. 0 rows. This is the absence of a record in DroneXL's archive, not a verified safety statistic; FAA and NTSB records are being swept and Wing was asked for its full incident list (question 7 of the generic set) and did not answer.
What Wing reports
| Stated total | Scope, as stated | As of | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| More than one million commercial deliveries | Worldwide, all markets since 2019. US share not stated. | Sept. 4, 2026 | Wing statement, via DroneXL |
These are the operators' own totals, quoted on the date shown. Their periods and geographies do not match each other or the incident column, so no rate can be built from them, and DroneXL does not compute one. A figure is replaced when the operator states a newer one.
Questions for Wing
Sent Sept. 8, 2026 · deadline Sept. 15, 2026 · No answer- 01The FAA's DFW filing lists two aircraft, the 15-lb 7000W-B and the 25-lb 8000-A. What is each one's empty weight and payload, and which one flies most Walmart orders today?No answer
- 02Wing's safety case relies on a light airframe and a tethered drop rather than a parachute. What is the designed descent behavior if lift is lost, and what does a 25-lb 8000-A do after a collision?No answer
- 03Has any Wing aircraft come down outside its nest or a designated contingency site in the US since 2019? Provide dates and locations.No answer
- 04How many nests are active today across the 368 authorized, and how many aircraft per nest are typically in service?No answer
- 05Will the 14 metros announced since June 2025, including Denver and Seattle on Oct. 5, 2026, proceed under the national programmatic EA, or will Wing file metro-specific environmental assessments? The question is sharpest in Washington, where Federal Way (August 2026) and Tacoma (September 2026) store filings went in with no FAA filing on the public list.No answer
- 06Wing and Flytrex share DFW airspace under a UTM arrangement. How are conflicts with Zipline and Amazon aircraft in the same metros deconflicted?No answer
- 07How many of the Hummingbird's lift rotors can fail before it can no longer hover, and what does the aircraft do if it loses lift while a package is on the tether above a yard?No answer
- 08The FAA Technical Noise Reports for DFW and Central Florida give the Hummingbird's sound levels. State the dBA at 50, 100 and 250 feet in hover and in cruise for both the 7000W-B and the 25-lb 8000-A, and the dominant frequency. Residents describe the 7000W-B as a high whine; is the heavier aircraft louder or lower in pitch?No answer
- 09Wing's DFW filing puts the 8000-A at 20 to 30 percent of the fleet. Which nests fly it today, what share of deliveries does it carry, and does it fly the same routes and altitudes as the 7000W-B?No answer
- 10The FAA lets Wing site a nest 65 feet from a home, or 120 feet inside Class B and D airspace. How many of the 368 authorized nests sit within 120 feet of a home, school or church, and where are they?No answer
- 11Wing performs 6 a.m. hover checks (FitBIT) and 60-foot mapping hovers (GeoBIT) at every nest before the operating day. Which nests are within earshot of homes at 6 a.m., and has Wing measured what residents hear?No answer
- 12At 400 flights a day per nest and 75 nests in DFW, how many overflights a day does a street 1, 3 and 5 miles from a nest receive at full build-out, and how does the route-diversification software cap the number of times one home is overflown?No answer
- 13What do the Hummingbird's cameras and sensors record over private property, at what resolution, who at Wing or Alphabet can view it, how long is it kept, and has any of it been shared with police or a third party?No answer
- 14If a tethered package, the tether hook or the aircraft damages a roof, a vehicle or a person, who is liable, under what insurance, and how does a resident file a claim? Has Wing paid any claim in the US?No answer
- 15At what wind speed, gust, rain rate and temperature does Wing stop launching, and what does an aircraft already on a delivery do when the limit is crossed while it is hovering at 23 feet with a package on the tether? Who at a town is notified when a Wing aircraft lands anywhere other than its nest?No answer
Status
Every operator gets the same fifteen generic questions on the same terms: weight and payload, recovery system, collision behavior, single points of failure, delivery method, drop-zone checks, incident record, who gets the call, sound level, pitch, overflight frequency, cameras and data, liability, weather limits, and an engineer at the public meeting. Plus the specific set at left. Answers are published in full and this page is updated the day they arrive.
Wing: sent Sept. 8, 2026, deadline Sept. 15, 2026. Result: No answer. 15 generic plus 15 specific questions sent Sept. 8, due Sept. 15. Nothing received by the deadline or since.
For your town
The council handout is operator-neutral. The FAA controls the airspace and the certificate; your town controls the site's zoning and permits where a permit is required, and the public record it builds by asking.
How approval worksDroneXL coverage
Built from the archive at every deploy: every story with Wing as its headline subject, or filed under its categoryOct 12, 2026
Gastonia Tells Residents Why Walmart Drones Will Be Over Their Homes
Oct 6, 2026
Wing Lists 19 Walmart Metros. Walmart's Hometown Isn't One of Them
Oct 5, 2026
Wing Picks Denver for Walmart Drones. Two Suburbs Already Froze Hubs
Sep 28, 2026
Northglenn Drafts Colorado's First Drone Rules. Wing Can Fly In Anyway
Sep 24, 2026
Lowe's Now Flies Painter's Tape to Charlotte Yards in 20 Minutes
Sep 21, 2026
Belvedere Puts Drone Delivery on the Books Before Wing Names a City
Sep 15, 2026
Wing's First Washington Drone Hub Surfaces in a Tacoma Permit
Sep 4, 2026
Wing Claims Largest US Drone Network As Amazon Promises 500 Cities
Jul 29, 2026
Wing Launches Walmart Drone Delivery In Orlando, Two Years After DroneUp Quit Florida
Jun 29, 2026
Flytrex And Wing Built Drone Air Traffic Control That Skips The Hard Part
Jun 27, 2026
Walmart and Wing drones head to Cincinnati
Jun 25, 2026
Maricopa, Arizona confirmed for Walmart Wing deliveries
Jun 17, 2026
Walmart and Wing name seven new metros
Mar 29, 2026
Wing's five drone delivery myths
Mar 24, 2026
Wing finally brings drone delivery to Bay Area residents, 14 years after being born there
Primary sources
Every figure on this page traces to one of these- Wing: Wing and Walmart name new metros, Oct. 5, 2026
- Wing: seven new markets, June 8, 2026
- FAA FONSI/ROD, Wing Aviation, Atlanta (up to 43 nests), Aug. 18, 2026
- FAA FONSI/ROD, Wing Aviation, Houston (up to 75 nests), Aug. 13, 2026
- FAA FONSI/ROD, Wing Aviation, Central Florida (up to 150 nests), May 30, 2025
- FAA Supplemental EA FONSI/ROD, Wing Aviation, Dallas-Fort Worth (up to 75 nests), Apr. 29, 2025
- FAA Written Re-evaluation, Wing Aviation, Charlotte Metro (up to 25 hubs), Apr. 29, 2025
- FAA FONSI/ROD, Wing Aviation, Dallas-Fort Worth (up to 25 nests), Nov. 8, 2023
- FAA FONSI/ROD, Wing Aviation, Frisco and Little Elm, Texas, Feb. 9, 2022
- FAA ROD, Wing Aviation, Christiansburg, Virginia, Dec. 17, 2021
- FAA: Public Involvement and Environmental Review for Drone Operations (index)
- KOMO News: Drone deliveries could be coming to Walmart supercenter in Tacoma, Sept. 2026
- The News Tribune: Walmart delivery drones coming to Federal Way; Tacoma permit review, Oct. 6, 2026
- Popular Science interview with Wing CEO Adam Woodworth (aircraft weights), 2022
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