Integrating Advanced Air Mobility Aircraft Represents Monumental Challenge

But NASA says it is up to the task in preparing for the next generation of flight.

Jack Daleo

Thursday, July 24, 2025 at 07:00 AM ET

Verified

Edited By:

Travis Tingle

Passengers take a simulated electrical vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) air taxi ride on NASA’s Vertical Motion Simulator at Ames Research Center in California. [Courtesy: NASA/Dominic Hart]

Key Takeaways:

The rise of Advanced Air Mobility (AAM), including autonomous drones and eVTOL air taxis, is creating significant complexity in national airspace, prompting NASA to lead research for their safe and efficient integration.
NASA's System Wide Safety (SWS) program is developing the In-time Aviation Safety Management System (IASMS) to proactively predict and mitigate aviation hazards by continuously monitoring multiple data sources, shifting safety from reactive to predictive.
Through projects like Air Traffic Management Exploration (ATM-X), NASA is creating next-generation air traffic management systems and collaborating with industry and regulators on standards, infrastructure, and operational safety to ensure AAM's successful and beneficial deployment.

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As the nation reels from one tragedy, researchers at NASA are working to prevent another as they study a new generation of aircraft—one that could introduce even more complexity in the national airspace system (NAS).

Advanced air mobility (AAM) is no longer a Jetsonian dream. Autonomous drones are inspecting infrastructure, flying missions for police and first responders, and delivering food, drinks, and prescriptions in major cities like Dallas-Fort Worth. Aerial firefighters are using remotely piloted aircraft to battle blazes.