Today, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Reauthorization Act of 2024 by a vote of 387 – 26 following the U.S. Senate’s 88 – 4 passage of the bill last week. 

The bipartisan legislation reauthorizes the FAA through Fiscal Year 2028 and requires the FAA to issue a notice of proposed rulemaking for UAS operations beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) within four months. The bill also includes a mandate for the FAA to publish a final special rule for operations of powered lift aircraft within seven months, which will help to meaningfully move the Advanced Air Mobility (AAM) industry forward. The legislation also includes key measures supported by AUVSI regarding grant programs, cyber security, workforce training, and autonomy, among dozens of other priorities of AUVSI and its members. 

On behalf of the Association for Uncrewed Vehicle Systems International (AUVSI), President and CEO Michael Robbins issued the following supportive statement: 

“AUVSI is proud to announce that the FAA Reauthorization Act includes multiple measures we have advocated for, and which will usher in meaningful progress toward the safe integration of drones and AAM within the national airspace system. 

AUVSI commends leaders in both chambers who worked to finalize multi-year FAA reauthorization in support of U.S. global tech competitiveness and meaningful growth of in advanced aviation and autonomy. 

We look forward to working with the FAA and Administrator Whitaker on the implementation of Congressional mandates on key issues for our industries, including a Part 108 BVLOS rule and a special final rule for powered lift aircraft operations, which will safely unlock scalability and new, high-value commercial drone and AAM operations.” 

AUSVI also published an analysis of key provisions in the bill that are relevant to the UAS and AAM industries; read the document here.