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Committee presses nominee on drones, advanced air mobility, autonomous vehicles and commercial space oversight
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Summary
Senators asked Sean Duffy to balance rapid innovation—drones, advanced air mobility, autonomous vehicles and commercial space—with safety and clear national rules. Duffy pledged to work with the committee, to support establishing the Center for Advanced Air Mobility and to review FAA and AST processes.
Committee members asked Sean Duffy how he would oversee and regulate rapidly evolving transportation technologies while preserving safety and U.S. leadership.
Chairman Cruz highlighted a center for advanced aviation technologies included in the Senate FAA reauthorization that aims to accelerate advanced air mobility and air taxis; Duffy told the chair, “I absolutely will” work with him to establish the center consistent with congressional intent. Senator Cantwell and others asked about drones and beyond-visual-line-of-sight (BVLOS) rulemaking; they said delays in FAA rulemaking had forced industry to rely on waivers. Duffy acknowledged the need for clear rules and said he would “look at where we're at in the rulemaking” and would not want innovators to “pack up and go to a different country.”
Lawmakers also pressed Duffy on autonomous vehicles, saying a patchwork of state rules risks ceding leadership to other countries; Duffy said he supported clear national rules and described AV policy as a national-competitiveness and national-security issue. Senators asked for work to protect U.S. technology leadership and data security while enabling innovation.
Commercial space licensing and enforcement also arose. Chairman Cruz asked Duffy to review FAA enforcement actions involving SpaceX and to ensure that the department’s approach “encourage[s], facilitate[s] and promote[s] commercial space,” not obstruct it; Duffy committed to reviewing the penalties and FAA’s processes for commercial space launches.
On supersonic flight and other next-generation aviation, senators asked Duffy to support corridors and rules that allow companies to test and operate safely in the United States; Duffy said he would work with members on permitting, testing corridors and rule clarity.
Across the technology conversations, senators repeatedly sought a dual outcome: clear federal guardrails that protect safety and privacy, and regulatory certainty that keeps U.S. innovators and capital at home. Duffy repeatedly pledged to review outstanding rulemakings, to work with the committee on technical assistance, and to seek rules that balance safety and innovation.
