![Drones fly above ground robots at the University of Michigan’s autonomous vehicle testbed site that is expanding to include electric and uncrewed aerial vehicles. [Szczepanski/Michigan Engineering]](https://flyingmag1.b-cdn.net/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/12/M-Air-drones-robots-Large.jpeg?width=1280&height=854)
The FAA has taken major strides toward the safe integration of advanced air mobility (AAM) aircraft such as drones and electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) air taxis.
A special federal aviation regulation (SFAR) for powered-lift pilot training and operations, guidance for powered-lift certification projects, a proposal for beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) drone flight, and more have been introduced in recent months. An eVTOL Integration Pilot Program (eIPP) is set to begin next year and conclude in 2028—a year the FAA anticipates AAM operations scaling up in major U.S. cities.
If you're not already a subscriber, what are you waiting for? Subscribe today to get the issue as soon as it is released in either Print or Digital formats.
Subscribe Now
But states are not waiting until these aircraft hit the skies to take matters into their own hands.
“We think about, from a small [uncrewed aircraft system] all the way to eVTOL, how do we make sure that our ecosystem can benefit from this?” said Justine Johnson, senior vice president and chief mobility officer of the Office of Future Mobility and Electrification (OFME) within the Michigan Economic Development Corporation (MEDC).
According to Johnson, OFME, established in 2020, is a “first-of-its-kind” office in the U.S. It works with a variety of partners—from state agencies such as the Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) to private sector companies—to study what kind of benefits AAM could bring to the state.
“This office was created to be, essentially, this one-stop shop that looks at all things around the future of mobility within the state of Michigan,” Johnson said.
Within just the past 18 months, the office has awarded more than $10 million in grants to test air taxi corridors, drone delivery of medical supplies, and more—as well as to create infrastructure around them. The funding comes from the state’s AAM Activation Fund, established last year in partnership with MDOT’s aeronautics division.
- READ MORE: GoAERO Competition Promotes Creation of Automatic Lifesavers
- READ MORE: Horizons Continue to Expand for Advanced Air Mobility
“It was about us pooling our resources together to really focus on safe deployments of technology,” Johnson said, “but also thinking about the infrastructure that would be needed to ensure that we could really take this leadership role across the state.”
Other states are replicating Michigan’s effort. In fact, MDOT is one of more than 30 state aviation agencies comprising the AAM Multistate Collaborative, which in August published several blueprints for harmonizing AAM regulations and infrastructure across state lines.
Some states, including Virginia, North Carolina, Georgia, and New Jersey, have already approved or funded pilot programs like Michigan’s. Other state, local, tribal, and territorial governments—at least five—will test use cases like passenger transport and medical logistics through the eIPP.
For these states, the question is not whether AAM will arrive. It’s when—and what will they do with it?
Team Effort
Michigan aims to take the lead in AAM. But it won’t be able to do it alone.
Fortunately, Johnson’s office is getting plenty of assistance. In July, for example, Governor Gretchen Whitmer signed an executive directive to create the Michigan AAM Initiative, which Johnson said is “about building out a whole-of-state approach to all things AAM.”
That means coordination across state agencies as well as public outreach through events, such as the Uncrewed Triple Challenge in May. The three-leg contest saw teams from eight states and three countries deliver a 10-pound package across air, land, and sea—with little to no input from humans.
One competitor, SiFly, set a world record with its Q12 drone, more than doubling the longest known multirotor payload flight. The Q12 flew 26 miles in wind gusts up to 32 mph en route to winning the air portion of the race.
“We invited high school students and community members to come out and participate,” Johnson said. “So it was just a good chance for them to get informed and to be educated, to ask us questions about what we’re doing and why.”
Johnson’s office seeks to build on the Triple Challenge with partners like MDOT and the Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE). Collectively, they have identified several applications they believe could create jobs and public benefit for the state. For example, Johnson said, drones could be deployed as first responders or to combat wildfires.
“How could we use drones to be more proactive, to do assessments and analysis of places where there are hot spots or vulnerabilities?” she asked.
Drones and eVTOL aircraft could also replace bulky delivery trucks and vans, delivering parts or components that are too small for a truck bed. Farmers could use the aircraft to plant seeds, analyze crops, and spray pesticides. The partners are also eyeing the technology for defense.
“That’s not to say that there may not be other things that evolve over time,” Johnson said, “but these are just really important areas that we want to see being prioritized within the state.”
Michigan Model
The OFME has already invested more than $10 million for such projects. An initial round of grants in July 2024 funded AAM testbeds, pilot projects, and developers of electric aircraft and infrastructure such as Beta Technologies and Skyports.
“We can’t do this work on our own, and so we encourage this level of collaboration to ensure that the infrastructure is in place and can be utilized, that there’s an end user,” Johnson said.
Beta is building charging infrastructure at four regional airports across the state. Skyports is leading a ship-to-shore delivery pilot that trades large container ships for drones. Drone logistics providers DroneUp and BlueFlite are using uncrewed aircraft to deliver medical supplies, provide emergency response, and conduct marine surveying and water testing in the state’s Grand Traverse region.
About $2.5 million was awarded to Michigan Central—a 30-acre technology hub in Detroit that is pursuing a range of projects. The 4-square-mile Transportation Innovation Zone, for example, offers a fast-track permitting process for new technologies. The Advanced Aerial Innovation Region, a 3-square-mile urban air testbed, hosts hundreds of BVLOS drone flights. Partners Airspace Link and Newlab facilitate FAA approvals, traffic management, and other tasks within the space.
“What goes up into the air has to land somewhere,” Johnson said. “So we want to make sure that whether that’s a droneport or vertiport, it is established for safe landing.”
A second round of grants this past July poured about $4 million primarily into drone-related projects. CVS Health, which in the past has experimented with prescription drone delivery, received $1.5 million to revisit the service. Another recipient, the University of Michigan, plans to build a 40-mile corridor between its Ann Arbor campus and Detroit for testing drones, eVTOLs, and other aircraft.
Ultimately, Johnson’s office wants to position Michigan as an attractive home for AAM developers—no matter what stage of development they are in.
“Having access to do your designing, your testing, and scaling and commercializing all right here in Michigan is something that’s very important,” she said. “When you think about manufacturing and who the big competitors are, they are all outside of the United States. You’re looking at about 80 percent of drones that are being manufactured in China.”
OFME also helps companies put their technology to the test in an airport setting through a program called FLITE (Ford Launchpad for Innovative Technologies and Entrepreneurship). Launched in 2022, the collaboration between Gerald R. Ford International Airport (KGRR), Southwest Airlines, and other partners has tested mobile charging systems, autonomous wheelchairs and lawnmowers, and other projects designed to improve the traveler experience.
“I think this is about truly building upon our legacy of the automotive industry…and really looking at the skyways as this next pathway that will unlock opportunities for all Michiganders,” Johnson said.
Help From Above
Johnson said her office communicates with the FAA “pretty regularly,” discussing trends and sharing data from pilot projects. The regulator will soon help other states facilitate their own trials.
![Michigan has awarded more than $10 million in grants to study autonomous drones, electric air taxis, and other new aviation technologies. [Michigan Economic Development Corporation]](https://flyingmag1.b-cdn.net/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/12/FLY1225_1.2-Modern-Flying-2.jpeg?width=1000&height=625)
Electric air taxi firms Archer Aviation and Joby Aviation announced they intend for their aircraft to take part in the upcoming eIPP. Air taxi developers Beta and Wisk Aero, cargo drone firm Elroy Air, flying car company Alef Aeronautics, and Florida’s Greater Orlando Aviation Authority—which operates Orlando International (KMCO) and Executive (KORL) airports—have all shared similar plans with FLYING.
Each eIPP project will require a government partner. Michigan, New Jersey, Delaware, Virginia, North Carolina, Georgia, and Utah state agencies, among others, have committed to studying interstate AAM corridors and other projects, making them potential candidates. Texas—the center of the nation’s burgeoning drone delivery industry—is another.
These eVTOL pilots could give many states their first real taste of a future with AAM. At the same time, the FAA is hoping it can shape regulations for the technology, which remains in its infancy.
Its success—or lack thereof—could have major implications for the way aviators must interact with drones, air taxis, and other low-flying AAM designs.
This column first appeared in the December Issue 965 of the FLYING print edition.
