Agency Tribal Nations Enacts Tribal Aviation Authority Act, Proposes American Advanced Air Mobility Manufacturing Initiative

Agency Tribal Nations, through its Head Chief and Tribal Council, today enacted the Tribal Aviation Authority Act (Act No. TAA-001), effective immediately, establishing a sovereign regulatory framework for aviation activity within the Mendocino Indian Reservation and other tribal territories. Alongside the Act, Agency Tribal Nations announced a proposed American Advanced Air Mobility Manufacturing Initiative (AAMMI) — a national program to build domestic manufacturing capacity for electric vertical-takeoff, powered-lift, and autonomous-capable aircraft.

Tribal Aviation Authority Act

The Act establishes the Tribal Aviation Authority (TAA), governed by a Tribal Aviation Commission for policy oversight and a Tribal Aviation Administrator for daily operations, organized into fifteen specialized divisions. The TAA's own code — spanning aircraft certification, powered-lift and advanced air mobility, additive manufacturing, electric propulsion, pilot certification, unmanned systems, vertiports, safety management, and enforcement — applies throughout tribal territory, with TAA requirements set at or above the level of protection required elsewhere in the National Airspace System.

Under the Act, a CJ Motors Advanced Air Mobility Certification Program gives a lead industry partner tribal regulatory infrastructure for prototype development, manufacturing, testing, and vertiport operations, within a designated Tribal Advanced Air Mobility Manufacturing Zone containing 3D-printing, composite, battery, and propulsion manufacturing alongside assembly, testing, and training facilities.

American Advanced Air Mobility Manufacturing Initiative

The companion federal proposal, AAMMI, envisions a coordinated national manufacturing program connecting aircraft production, battery and propulsion manufacturing, autonomous flight systems, workforce development, and tribal and rural economic development. Phased targets in the proposal call for 1,000+ aircraft/year manufacturing capacity in an initial phase, scaling toward 50,000+ aircraft/year, anchored by a proposed CJ Motors manufacturing campus.

The initiative outlines a proposed 10-year, $10 billion federal funding architecture combining manufacturing grants, federal loan financing, infrastructure investment, R&D, workforce development, and a dedicated tribal and rural program component, built to work through existing federal channels rather than establish a new regulatory system from scratch.

Status

The Tribal Aviation Authority Act is enacted tribal law, effective August 14, 2026. The American Advanced Air Mobility Manufacturing Initiative remains a proposal at this stage — not an existing federal program — and this release should not be read as confirmation of federal funding, FAA-equivalent certification, or formal government-to-government agreements. Agency Tribal Nations intends to pursue federal coordination and industry partnership discussions as next steps on AAMMI.

Contact

Office of the Head Chief
Agency Tribal Nations
Mendocino Indian Reservation
Email: taa@tribalnations.email