DoorDash Earns FAA Part 135 Certification to Launch In-House Drone Delivery
The food delivery giant becomes the eighth U.S. drone operator to clear federal air carrier requirements, building its own hardware and software stack through DoorDash Labs.
DoorDash has secured FAA Part 135 air carrier certification, clearing the regulatory hurdle needed to operate its own commercial drone delivery program. The company becomes only the eighth drone operator in the United States to complete the certification process.
Building the Full Stack
The new program, called DoorDash Air, is being developed in-house by DoorDash Labs. Unlike its current partnerships with third-party providers like Wing and Flytrex, DoorDash Air represents a vertically integrated approach: the company will design and build its own drones using primarily American-made components, along with the ground infrastructure and routing software that connect them.
"We want drone delivery to work for any merchant, anywhere," said Harrison Shih, head of DoorDash Air. "We're building the full stack to make that possible from the ground infrastructure to the drone itself, and the handoff systems that make it work together seamlessly."
The FAA certification required a five-stage evaluation covering airworthiness, maintenance protocols, safety management systems, and hazardous materials programs. The rigorous process ensures commercial drone operators meet the same safety standards as traditional air carriers.
Multimodal Strategy
DoorDash Air fits into a broader multimodal delivery network the company has been assembling. In September 2025, DoorDash Labs unveiled Dot, an autonomous ground delivery robot designed for shorter-range deliveries. The company is now targeting mid-range routes with drones—distances that are currently less attractive to human Dashers and take longer to complete than shorter trips.
The strategy allows DoorDash to route orders to the most efficient delivery mode based on distance and demand: human couriers for complex handoffs, ground robots for nearby drops, and drones for mid-range efficiency.
Pilot Program Results
Data from 2025 pilot programs suggests the approach could move the needle on both speed and volume. Drone deliveries during the pilots averaged 25 minutes from order to drop-off. Some locations saw order volume grow by approximately 30% for nine weeks following launch, indicating that faster delivery options may stimulate additional demand.
"Advances in hardware, compute, and AI are creating extraordinary new capabilities for local commerce, and becoming a certified air carrier accelerates everything we're building," Shih said.
Industry Implications
By becoming a certified air carrier, DoorDash gains full control over its delivery stack rather than relying entirely on external partners. The company has also positioned itself as a potential infrastructure provider for the wider industry through interoperable merchant handoff systems that could work across multiple drone operators.
DoorDash has stated it will share more details about the commercial launch timeline later this year.