SEATTLE (AP) – Seattle-based Amazon is unveiling its first branded cargo plane, one of 40 jetliners that will make up the e-commerce giant’s own air transportation network as it takes more control of its delivery process. The latest push to speed delivery of its products comes as the company ships an increasing number of packages worldwide. Amazon’s parcel volume was an estimated 1 billion packages in 2015 – the same number that FedEx delivered three years earlier for hundreds of thousands of customers. Amazon has had issues with the reliability of air freight services. In 2013, it offered refunds to customers who got their Christmas orders late after bad weather and a jump in online shopping caused delays for UPS and FedEx. Analysts say it makes sense for Amazon to use an air fleet it controls as another way to get its products to online shoppers drawn to fast, no-extra-cost delivery. Amazon will reveal its branded cargo plane, Amazon One, today at the annual Seafair Air Show. The plane will buzz over Seattle’s Lake Washington just before the Navy’s Blue Angels take to the skies, a company official said.
