Planning for Advanced Air Mobility

Advanced air mobility (AAM) has the potential to impact communities' access to air mobility, goods delivery, and emergency services in urban, suburban, and rural areas. Though AAM is still in the early days of development, this emerging transportation sector could result in fundamental changes to the built environment. Communities should be prepared to minimize the potential for adverse impacts and maximize the likelihood of sustainable and equitable outcomes.

PAS Report 606, Planning for Advanced Air Mobility, presents planners and policymakers with the foundational knowledge to understand important considerations for AAM development and potential community impacts. It provides information for the public sector to integrate AAM into planning and policymaking at the local and regional levels of government, and it highlights the need for greater awareness about AAM and its potential impacts among communities, which may have little prior experience with aviation planning issues.

The report defines AAM and presents a snapshot of the current state of the industry. It addresses the potential impacts of AAM on communities and how this could shape public perception of this sector, including important social equity considerations. The report explores the potential to repurpose or create new infrastructure for AAM and integrate these facilities into existing multimodal transportation networks. It offers guidance on integrating AAM into local and regional planning and regulatory processes, and it shares the experiences of communities that are beginning to address AAM in their plans and policies.

While AAM presents opportunities, issues such as community impacts, social equity, land use compatibility, and multimodal integration could create challenges for its deployment. Planners are well-positioned to help their communities understand, prepare for, and guide the evolution of AAM. This PAS Report provides the guidance they will need.

This report is available for download on the American Planning Association website.