AUVSI Welcomes DOT’s National Strategy for Advanced Air Mobility

December 17, 2025 | Michael Robbins

The Association for Uncrewed Vehicle Systems International (AUVSI) congratulates the Department of Transportation (DOT) and the Advanced Air Mobility Interagency Working Group (AAM IWG) on the release of The Advanced Air Mobility National Strategy. The strategy reflects significant cross-government effort and represents a breakthrough in aligning federal priorities to advance AAM safely, responsibly, and at scale.

Automation as a Foundational Pillar

“Recognizing automation as a core pillar of our national strategy is a critical milestone for the future of aviation and enhancing aviation safety,” said Michael Robbins, President and CEO of AUVSI. “We look forward to partnering with DOT, FAA, Congress, state and local governments, and industry to translate this strategy into action, accelerate innovation, and ensure that the benefits of advanced air mobility are realized for communities across the nation and the U.S. remains the world leader in advanced aviation.”

Testing, Certification, and Safety at Scale

AUVSI supports the strategy’s emphasis on simulation, virtual testing, and coordinated government test infrastructure, and encourages a disciplined, safety-focused application of existing operating rules to increasingly autonomous aircraft. Key priorities include:

• Leveraging validated digital testing and simulation to accelerate certification and operational approval
• Avoiding duplicative or fragmented interagency testing and review processes
• Maintaining performance-based, safety-intent-driven oversight as autonomy advances

Airspace Integration, Digitalization, and Security

The strategy’s focus on airspace integration, digital communications, and security is similarly well-placed. Scaled AAM operations will depend on continued progress toward:

• Digitized and automated flight rules and digital communications infrastructure
• Autonomy and self-separation enabling technologies
• Balanced, risk-based approaches to physical security and cybersecurity

Autonomy Roadmap and Interagency Coordination

AUVSI appreciates the strategy’s reference to the AUVSI Blueprint for Autonomy and welcomes the opportunity to support further autonomy roadmap development in close collaboration with DOT, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), and partner agencies. We also strongly support:

• Establishing sustained, senior-level interagency coordination to drive implementation
• Ensuring the strategy’s recommendations translate into timely regulatory and operational outcomes

Pathways to Remote and Pilotless Operations

As the strategy moves into implementation, AUVSI urges policymakers to ensure that remotely operated aircraft and pathways to operations without an onboard pilot are explicitly included in autonomy roadmap development. While assistive autonomy technologies such as Simplified Vehicle Operations (SVO) and Single-Pilot Flight Concepts (SFC) can deliver important near-term safety benefits, long-term success will require:

• Clear certification pathways for aircraft designed to operate without onboard pilots
• Defined operational approval frameworks for remote and autonomous operations
• Performance-based safety approaches that do not rely on reversionary assumptions

Delivering Public Value

Advanced air mobility offers meaningful public benefits, including:

• Medical logistics and emergency response
• Expanded connectivity for rural and underserved communities
• Workforce growth and high-tech job creation
• National security and resilience applications

AUVSI looks forward to continuing to partner with government and industry to advance autonomy in aviation and to help implement the National Strategy for Advanced Air Mobility in a way that delivers safe, scalable, and lasting public benefit and U.S. global leadership in advanced aviation and autonomy.