All questions
Year in review
In 2025, the change in leadership at the federal level yielded corresponding changes in priorities and initiatives at agencies like the DOT and FAA. For example, in recent years the DOT had increased the scope and activity level of its oversight of competition in the airline industry. The new administration revoked the prior administration's executive order on competition and apparently will not fill the vacant DOT chief competition officer position. Nevertheless, the administration has not signalled a major departure from historical practice in implementing antitrust and competition law in air transportation. For example, in September 2025, the DOT terminated its approval of a joint venture arrangement and associated grant of antitrust immunity for Delta Air Lines and Aeromexico on the basis of alleged anti-competitive effects in US–Mexico City markets.2
A major air accident took place in January of 2025 in Washington, DC, in which an airliner on approach to land collided with an army helicopter transiting the airspace, resulting in 67 fatalities. The incident added to existing scrutiny of the quality and effectiveness of the US air traffic control (ATC) system. Legislation was introduced in Congress to, among other things, require aircraft to be equipped with ADS-B In systems, and to accelerate the development of next generation traffic deconfliction technology known as ACAS-X.3 The government committed to a significant funding effort for ATC modernisation and controller hiring.
The US continued to support the evolution of commercial drone and advanced air mobility (AAM) technologies. In June 2025, an executive order, ‘Unleashing American Drone Dominance’, called for accelerating the development and deployment of commercial drone systems.4 It also announced the establishment of an electric vertical takeoff and landing pilot programme, the ‘eVTOL Integration Pilot Program (eIPP)’ to accelerate the deployment of eVTOL aircraft such as those under development by commercial AAM companies. Significantly, the order linked eIPP activities to the FAA's existing drone testing programme, which affords the FAA substantial latitude to grant waivers from regulatory requirements in order to support operations and development. In September 2025, the FAA published a notice soliciting proposals for participation in the eIPP.5 Also in 2025, the FAA published for public comment its proposed new regulation on the design and operation of drones, to facilitate the introduction of commercial drone operations in the NAS.6
