Amazon Patents UAV That Self-Destructs In Event Of Emergency Written 5 December 2017

NBC News reports that Amazon has been granted a patent for “drone technology that allows the craft to strategically self-destruct in the event of an emergency.” The technology would allow Amazon to design a UAV that can “strategically disassemble” to mitigate damage to property or injury to persons on the ground. The UAV would use onboard computer systems to “analyze conditions to determine the best course of action.” An illustration included with the patent filing “shows the device disassembling to drop pieces on empty patches of ground [or] in a small body of water, and safely crashing into a tree.”
More Info (NBC News)