AASHTO Journal - USDOT Establishes Two New UAS Testing Sites in U.S.

The U.S. Department of Transportation and the Federal Aviation Administration recently unveiled two new domestic test sites for Unmanned Aircraft Systems or UAS, also known as drones; the first new UAS testing grounds established in nearly a decade. 

[Above image by FAA]

Located in the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma and Indiana Economic Development Corporation, the new locations are part of the agency’s UAS Test Site program that supports development, testing, and evaluation of public and civil unmanned aircraft and related technologies and helps advance the safe integration of drones into the National Airspace System or NAS. 

“From delivering lifesaving medicine to surveying pipelines, drones are already reshaping industries and changing how people and products interact,” noted Sean Duffy, USDOT secretary, in a statement. “We’ve added these new test sites to help us gather critical data and test new systems so we can safely unleash innovation in our skies.”

[Editor’s note: In August 2025, the USDOT unveiled a notice of proposed rulemaking or NPRM regarding “Beyond Visual Line of Sight” or BVLOS operations to aid in the safe integration of UAS into the NAS. The American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials subsequently provided comments on that proposed rule in October 2025.]

“These test sites help the U.S. assess emerging technologies to modernize methods for cargo delivery, BVLOS operations, and multiple drone operations while informing safety and security,” added FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford. “Together, we will usher in the safe commercialization of drone technologies and fully integrate UAS into our NAS.” 

Those two test sites will become the eighth and ninth such locations in the U.S., which also include: 

The Alaska Center for Unmanned Aircraft Systems Integration
The Northern Plains UAS Test Site in North Dakota
The New Mexico State University UAS Test Site
The State of Nevada UAS Test Site
The New York State UAS Test Site 
The Texas A&M University Corpus Christi Autonomy Research Institute
The Mid-Atlantic Aviation Partnership in Virginia

The FAA said its UAS Test Sites will also focus on BVLOS operations for drones, increasingly autonomous operations, advanced air mobility, and similar aerial operations.