Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)

The FAA holds exclusive authority over U.S. airspace, including all drone flight permissions — making it the single gatekeeper for whether commercial drones can legally fly beyond a pilot's line of sight. - Reopened Part 108 comment period January 28 – February 11, 2026; expected to finalize rule by mid-March 2026; facing pressure to impose stricter safety oversight before finalization

For nearly a decade, every commercial drone operator in the United States that wanted to fly beyond a pilot's line of sight had to apply for an individual waiver from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) — a slow, bespoke process that capped the industry at small pilot programs. On August 7, 2025, the FAA published a proposed rule that would replace that waiver system with a standardized regulatory pathway, creating a new Part 108 of federal aviation rules specifically for routine beyond-visual-line-of-sight (BVLOS) operations. In January 2026, the FAA reopened the comment period for 14 days (closing February 11, 2026), signaling active refinement of the rule ahead of an expected March 2026 finalization.

Updated 7 days ago

The FAA oversees all civil aviation in the United States and administers the Airport Improvement Program and the IIJA airport grant programs that channel federal funds to more than 3,300 airports. - Administering final year of IIJA airport grant programs

For five years, the largest airport-funding program in American history pumped roughly $3 billion a year into runways, terminals, and taxiways at more than 3,300 airports. That pipeline is now closing. In December 2025, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) released the fifth and final round of Airport Infrastructure Grant (AIG) formula allocations—$2.89 billion for fiscal year 2026—and opened the last competition for the Airport Terminal Program, worth approximately $1 billion. No successor program exists.

Updated Feb 20

The FAA regulates U.S. civil aviation, operates the national air traffic control system, and administers airport infrastructure grants. - Administering final year of five-year IIJA tower grant program

For decades, small and regional airports have relied on aging air traffic control towers built in the 1960s and 1970s, with limited federal help for upgrades. On January 21, 2026, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) quietly opened a grant window that makes up to $120 million available—six times the annual norm—at 100% federal cost, covering everything from tower reconstruction to the construction of FAA-certified remote towers. It is the final and largest funding round of a five-year program created by the 2021 Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act.

Updated Feb 20

Agency responsible for regulating civil aviation in the United States, including air traffic control and airspace management. - Implementing reforms under intense scrutiny

The National Transportation Safety Board has concluded its investigation into the January 2025 collision between American Airlines Flight 5342 and a U.S. Army Black Hawk helicopter over the Potomac River—the deadliest aviation accident on U.S. soil since 2001. All 67 people aboard both aircraft died, including 28 members of the figure skating community returning from a national development camp. The NTSB found the crash was '100% preventable' and issued 50 safety recommendations, with 32 directed at the Federal Aviation Administration.

Updated Feb 5

Regulates all civil aviation, including commercial drone operations, in the United States. - Finalizing BVLOS drone rules

Zipline spent eight years delivering blood to remote Rwandan clinics before Americans could order lunch from one of its drones. Now the company has crossed 2 million commercial deliveries—more than every competitor combined—and raised $600 million in January 2026 to bring its autonomous aircraft to Houston and Phoenix. At a $7.6 billion valuation, Zipline's strategy is proving the drone delivery market by starting where regulation permitted, then scaling into U.S. consumer markets.

Updated Jan 31

Federal agency regulating civil aviation, including Part 135 commuter and on-demand operations. - Under pressure to close Part 135 weight-and-balance loophole

Ten people died when Bering Air Flight 445 crashed onto Norton Sound sea ice on February 6, 2025. The Cessna 208B was flying 1,058 pounds over its maximum weight for icing conditions—a violation investigators could only discover after the crash because federal regulations don't require single-engine commuter operators to keep load manifests. The pilot received weather advisories warning of moderate icing three hours before takeoff. He flew anyway, overloaded, into freezing rain.

Updated Jan 7

The FAA decides when “commercial spaceflight” is allowed to behave like an industry instead of an experiment. - Sets the licensing and corrective-action bar that determines whether cadence is real

On December 20, 2025, Blue Origin flew New Shepard NS-37—and a line quietly snapped. Michaela “Michi” Benthaus became the first wheelchair user to cross the Kármán line, float free in microgravity, and come home safely.

Updated Dec 20, 2025

The FAA is trying to convert decades of “NextGen” ambition into a deadline-driven rebuild of ATC infrastructure. - Owner/operator of the National Airspace System; committing near-term funding and deadlines

The FAA is no longer talking about “modernization” like it’s a distant science project. In a House hearing, Administrator Bryan Bedford said the agency will commit $6 billion by the end of 2025 to upgrade ATC telecom networks and radar surveillance—aiming to deploy by the end of 2028.

Updated Dec 16, 2025

The FAA certifies and oversees U.S. civil aircraft and airlines. Its decisions on the 737 MAX — from late grounding in 2019 to recertification in 2020 and a 2024 emergency order after Alaska 1282 — frame the regulatory context for Boeing’s safety reforms. - Primary safety regulator for Boeing aircraft; imposes MAX groundings and oversight

On December 8, 2025, Boeing completed its $4.7 billion acquisition of Spirit AeroSystems, valuing the deal at about $8.3 billion including debt and reversing a 2005 spin‑off that created the world’s largest independent aerostructures supplier. The transaction folds Spirit’s Boeing‑related commercial and aftermarket work — including 737, 767, 777 and 787 fuselages and major structures — back into Boeing, while carving out a separate Spirit Defense unit and divesting all Airbus‑related Spirit sites to Airbus and Spirit’s Malaysian plant to CTRM to satisfy U.S. and EU antitrust conditions.

Updated Dec 11, 2025