The Trump administration has proposed a rule to significantly expand drone operations, which could alter America’s shopping habits, boosting retailers like Walmart and Amazon as they expand into delivering consumer packages by autonomous aircraft. The proposal aims to safely integrate drones — technically called unmanned aircraft systems — into the national airspace. Under current rules, operators must seek individual waivers for flights beyond the drone operator’s direct line of visual sight. The Federal Aviation Administration’s (FAA) Bryan Bedford said comments accompanying the rule announcement that the “Beyond Visual Line of Sight” proposal is “key to realizing drones’ societal and economic benefits.” He cited package delivery first, followed by agriculture, aerial surveying, public safety, recreation and flight testing. An FAA fact sheet said that under the proposal, drone operations would occur at or below 400 feet above ground level, from pre-designated and access-controlled locations. Operators would need FAA approval for the areas where they intend to fly, and proposals for a single operator to fly multiple drones would be evaluated on a case-by-case basis.