DOT FORMS INTERAGENCY WORKING GROUP AND ISSUES REQUEST FOR INFORMATION ON ADVANCED AIR MOBILITY
June 12, 2023
On May 17, 2023, DOT completed steps to comply with its obligations related to the development of a national strategy on Advanced Air Mobility (“AAM”) as required under the Advanced Air Mobility Coordination and Leadership Act (the “Act”), enacted in 2022.
Under the Act, DOT is required to create an interagency working group (“IWG”) to help develop the U.S. strategy for implementing policies related to AAM, and to advance the Biden administration’s goal to accelerate the implementation of electric air taxi services by 2024. DOT has now officially created the IWG, which will be made up of 22 members from various federal agencies including, FAA, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (“NASA”), the Transportation Security Administration (“TSA”), and the Federal Communications Commission (“FCC”), among others. The IWG is tasked with planning and coordinating efforts to integrate advanced air mobility aircraft into the national airspace system, particularly in terms of passenger carrying aircraft, to expand new transportation options, make recommendations regarding safety, operations, and security, increase jobs and economic activity, advance environmental sustainability and new technologies, and support emergency preparedness and competitiveness. To further efforts on AAM advancement, DOT also issued a request for information from airline industry officials and the public on a number of topics including but not limited to: (1) what should be addressed in the AAM national strategy, (2) what respondents believe are existing barriers to success of AAM implementation, (3) what steps the U.S. Government should focus on in the short, medium, and long term to maximize the potential for successful AAM implementation in the U.S (4) how AAM expansion will occur while maintaining aviation safety, (5) what statutes, regulations, or policies should be created or updated to support the expansion of AAM operations, (6) what environmental impacts the AAM industry as a whole might have, and (7) how the future of AAM could expand jobs in the U.S. Respondents are encouraged to submit comments on these topics by July 17, 2023, in the applicable docket, available here.
If you have any questions, please contact Evelyn Sahr (esahr@eckertseamans.com 202-659-6622) or Drew Derco (dderco@eckertseamans.com 202-659-6665).
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