The Texas Department of Transportation has begun the first phase of Project Nexus, a multi-state testing program intended to prepare electric air taxis and other next-generation aircraft for use in Texas skies, the agency announced Sept. 10.
The initial flights launched at Fort Worth Alliance Airport and will use traditional aircraft such as helicopters and fixed-wing planes to collect data, validate routes and support the safe development of future advanced air mobility operations, TxDOT said in its release. None of the first-phase flights will carry passengers.
The program grew out of a federal selection in March 2026, when U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean P. Duffy and the Federal Aviation Administration chose TxDOT’s proposal for the new Electric Vertical Takeoff and Landing Integration Pilot Program, according to the agency.
“Under President Trump, we are unlocking the future of flight and empowering innovators to build and test these exciting aircraft right here in the U.S.,” Duffy said. “Today marks another critical step in our work to reshape how people and products move for the better.”
U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, who joined Duffy and TxDOT at the launch, said the state was “pushing the boundaries by testing the next generation of aircraft through Project Nexus” and that the technologies “will connect communities, expand access to jobs and services, and strengthen supply chains.”
Texas Transportation Commissioner Steven D. Alvis said in the release that the program “puts Texas at the forefront of a transformational moment in aviation,” crediting projects like it and the vision of Gov. Greg Abbott. TxDOT Executive Director Marc Williams called Project Nexus “a first-of-its-kind opportunity to gather real-world data, improve safety and build a framework for how electric aircraft could one day connect people, goods and communities across the state.”
The Texas pilot will advance in phases over the next three years, the agency said. Later stages are to test medical and cargo logistics, including moving critical medical supplies or organs between rural facilities and urban medical centers in Austin and San Antonio, before a final phase carrying passengers on air taxi flights across the Texas triangle.
Nationwide, the federal pilot program involves aircraft manufacturers, operators and state partners pursuing urban air taxi service, regional passenger transportation, cargo and logistics networks, emergency medical response operations, autonomous flight technologies, and offshore and energy-sector transportation, according to TxDOT. The agency said Project Nexus is designed to create a scalable system that can link urban centers, rural communities and neighboring states as advanced air mobility technology matures.