Embry-Riddle Team to Lead $6.7 Million NASA Project to Advance Safety of Next-Generation Air Mobility

NASA has awarded a $6.7 million grant to support research led by Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University that aims to equip advanced air mobility (AAM) aircraft with the capability to respond in real-time to unexpected events and emergencies, enhancing both reliability and operational safety.

The four-year project, directed by Dr. Hever Moncayo, professor of Aerospace Engineering, is designed to help facilitate the safe integration of AAM vehicles — such as vertical-takeoff air taxis and delivery or medical emergency drones — into the national airspace.

“We will work on techniques that will enable the real-time detection, self-assessment and response to abnormal conditions while autonomously adjusting vehicles’ actions to maintain safety under operational constraints,” said Moncayo. “These learning processes will enable intelligent decision-making for more resilient AAM systems.”

The project, funded by a NASA University Leadership Initiative (ULI) grant, will be conducted in collaboration with researchers at Georgia Tech, the University of Texas at Arlington, the University of Southern California, Collins Aerospace and Argonne National Laboratory.

“This team will research continuously updating, self-diagnostic vehicle health management to enhance the safety and reliability of [AAM] vehicles,” according to a NASA news release.

The team is one of three selected by NASA as part of the initiative, which will award up to $20.7 million to the teams during the next three years, according to the release.

“By combining faculty expertise, student innovation and industry experience, these three teams will advance NASA’s vision for the future of 21st-century aviation,” Koushik Datta, NASA University Innovation project manager at the agency’s Ames Research Center in California, said in the release.

“This ULI project brings together the expertise of four academic institutions, one industry partner, and one collaborating national research lab,” Moncayo said. “It will converge expertise from academia and industry to accelerate advancements in aviation safety and enhance the reliability and autonomy of next-generation air mobility, and will support the transition of autonomous safety architectures into commercial and regulatory frameworks.”

Embry-Riddle co-investigators on the project include Dr. K. Merve Dogan, assistant professor of Aerospace Engineering; Dr. Maj Mirmirani, dean emeritus of the College of Engineering; and Dr. Victor Fraticelli, assistant professor of Aeronautical Science.

“The diverse backgrounds of our research team will provide valuable perspectives to address the technical challenges in autonomous system safety, helping to reduce the gaps that have limited and/or delayed the integration of Advanced Air Mobility systems into the National Airspace System,” Moncayo said.

“I’m thrilled to contribute to this prestigious project,” said Dogan, “particularly developing resilient control algorithms that adapt to real-time constraints to ensure safety in complex aviation environments.”

In addition to advancing airborne transportation technology, the project emphasizes education and workforce development. It will offer research and career mentoring to undergrad and graduate students, plus related course development.

“This project actively involves graduate and undergraduate students, so we are excited about the opportunity to promote education and support workforce development for the future of intelligent aviation systems,” Moncayo said.

Dr. Jeremy Ernst, Embry-Riddle’s vice president for research and doctoral programs, said that he is “delighted that Dr. Moncayo and his multidisciplinary, multi-institutional team were selected to conduct the NASA ULI project.”

“This highly competitive award recognizes our institution's significant expertise in advanced air mobility systems research,” he said. “I look forward to seeing the project's progress and the impact it will ultimately have.”

Posted In: Aviation | Engineering | Research | Uncrewed Systems