The FAA recently issued the first conditional approval for a public-use vertiport at Allen C. Perkinson Blackstone Army Airfield (KBKT) in Blackstone, Virginia, a key milestone for the AAM industry and critical first step towards developing sufficient infrastructure for large-scale AAM operations. A public-private partnership (PPP) at the KBKT vertiport will enable innovative research on instrument flight operations and air traffic management, which will benefit the industry as it develops vertiport designs, standards, procedures, and related infrastructure based on the evolving operational environment. State and local support of infrastructure development and research will continue to be vital to AAM, including community engagement, planning, zoning, and permitting, and PPPs such as the vertiport research initiative at KBKT. The project at KBKT may serve as a model for future collaborations, combining state funding and private investment to enable groundbreaking research and regulatory approval. KBKT is a dual-use airport for military and civilian…