FAA Resources

Research & Development

The FAA collaborates internally and maintains extensive partnerships across government, industry, and academia to develop integrated research plans that support the development of regulations, policies, procedures, guidance, and standards for UAS operations. Research activities such as flight tests, modeling and simulation, technology evaluations, risk assessments, and data gathering and analysis provide the FAA with critical information in areas such as Detect and Avoid, UAS Communications, Human Factors, System Safety, and Certification, all of which enable the Agency to make informed decisions on safe UAS integration. Read more about this work and the critical partnerships that advance UAS R&D activities below.

Center of Excellence (COE)

The FAA UAS Center of Excellence – the Alliance for System Safety of UAS through Research Excellence (ASSURE) – is comprised of 15 of the world's leading research institutions, led by Mississippi State University, along with 8 affiliate universities. It focuses on research, education, and training in areas critical to safe and successful integration of UAS into the nation's airspace.

Read more in this COE Assure Overview (PDF).

UAS Research Reports

One-page status reports on research conducted or being conducted regarding the safe integration of unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) into the National Airspace System (NAS).

UAS Test Sites

UAS Test Sites support UAS integration by providing an avenue for the UAS industry and stakeholder community to conduct more advanced UAS research and operational concept validation.

Original content for this page gathered from: https://www.faa.gov/uas/research/