Florida to Test eVTOLs at SunTrax with FAA

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis unveiled plans to test advanced air mobility and eVTOLs at the SunTrax facility in Auburndale, with the FAA naming Florida as a partner in an AAM pilot program. The state will begin testing by year-end in Polk County, repurposing nearly $200 million in federal funds originally set aside for electric vehicle charging stations to support battery-powered vertical-takeoff aircraft and vertiports along the I-4 corridor. DeSantis described eVTOLs as an “Uber taxi in the air” that can take off without runways, potentially reducing traffic and enabling passenger and cargo use, including emergency applications. SunTrax will expand to two vertiports, becoming the nation’s first dedicated AAM aerial test tracks. Officials also noted continued autonomous and self-driving vehicle testing, with Waymo expanding operations in Central Florida, alongside partnerships with Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University and Polk State College to train pilots, air traffic controllers, and maintenance personnel. The announcements frame the project as moving from regulatory groundwork to infrastructure development for a future mobility system along the I-4 corridor and beyond.