Advanced Air Mobility is an ambitious roadmap to make the Saudi air transport sector the safest and most developed in Middle East region

The General Authority of Civil Aviation (GACA) created the Advanced Air Mobility (AAM) in Saudi Arabia programme, an ambitious plan to transform the country's air transportation industry into the most advanced and safest in the Middle East. This covers a broad spectrum of creative solutions, from tiny unmanned aircraft to vertical take-off and landing planes. These technologies, which have high technical capabilities and contribute to reducing traffic on the roads and making it easier to reach remote areas of the nation, will be able to provide safe, reliable, sustainable, and faster means of transportation for people and goods. This will help to achieve overall economic and social development.

The AAM effort in Saudi Arabia, according to Capt. Sulaiman Al-Muhaymedi, executive vice president of GACA for aviation safety and environmental sustainability, comprises the necessary actions to create a thorough roadmap that positions AAM at the forefront of the aviation sector. With its cutting-edge technologies, ranging from vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) planes to small, unmanned aircraft systems (sUAS), the AAM is revolutionising the transportation industry's future.

According to him, these advancements are revolutionising emergency response, medical evacuation, passenger travel, cargo transportation, and disaster assistance. In addition to highlighting the initiative's inclusion of the fundamentals for creating an effective framework for cutting-edge air travel, he called attention to environmental sustainability.

The "Enabling AAM in the Kingdom" initiative is one of the aviation sector's initiatives aimed at formulating strategic directions and establishing relevant regulatory frameworks following international best practices to reduce the negative environmental impacts resulting from civil aviation activities. In 2022, GACA launched a draft plan to develop environmental sustainability in the field of civil aviation. This aligns with the goals of Saudi Vision 2030, which include reaffirming the Kingdom's place in the world aviation scene and advancing its ambition to become a hub for international transportation in the future.