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Florida Poly unveils a Jetson ONE for its police department, with FAA approval still pending
Florida Polytechnic University says that on October 20, 2026 its police department unveiled a Jetson ONE nicknamed Astro, and that FAA approval to use it is still being sought. The university says it is the first U.S. law-enforcement agency to integrate an eVTOL. Jetson's CEO says the order was fast-tracked despite a three-year waiting list. No operational flight is reported.
Florida Polytechnic University said on October 20, 2026 that its police department has become the first law-enforcement agency in the nation to integrate an electric vertical-takeoff-and-landing vehicle. The university's release names the aircraft Astro and says it is a Jetson ONE from California-based Jetson. That "first" is the university's claim. WFTV reports that the university says it is the first agency to integrate a piloted eVTOL, and that the university unveiled the aircraft. WUSF reported the announcement as a plan to be the first, and wrote that the department would be the first, while final FAA approval to officially use the vehicle is still awaited.
The aircraft they unveiled
WFTV reports the unveiling in Lakeland. The university refers to Astro's arrival and describes the aircraft as already with the department. This page treats that as the university having the aircraft. The sources do not use the word "delivered," and they do not describe an operational flight.
The university says intended uses include monitoring the campus and surrounding acres, reaching areas that are hard to get to by road, post-storm recovery, delivering emergency supplies, and supporting other agencies in the region. Those are plans. The university also says students and faculty will use the aircraft as a research tool, and that an aerospace engineering degree started this fall.
The order, as Jetson's CEO describes it
Jetson chief executive Stéphan D'haene said the company fast-tracked Florida Poly's order for the Jetson ONE despite a three-year waiting list, because of the university's STEM focus and the police department's public-safety purpose. He said Jetson had been looking for a use case beyond recreational flight. WUSF reports those remarks as coming from the university's release. The sources that loaded do not state a purchase price.
FAA approval is not described as granted
The university says it is in the final stages of seeking FAA approval to use the aircraft in operations. WFTV reports the same. WUSF says the university is awaiting final approval to officially use the vehicle as part of police operations. None of the three reports says approval has been granted. None describes the approval as a type certificate. No operational flight is reported.
The university also says Florida was selected for the FAA's eVTOL and Advanced Air Mobility Integration Pilot Program, and that eVTOL testing at the SunTrax facility in Auburndale is expected by the end of 2026. The university presents that as separate state news arriving at the same time. It does not say Astro is part of that programme.
What is not established
FAA approval is not reported as granted. No operational flight is reported. The "first in the nation" wording is the university's claim, and WUSF's account is more cautious. A price is not stated in the university release, WUSF or WFTV. The sources do not state a seat count, a certificate the Jetson ONE already holds, or an operating limit.
Sources
Facts as reported by the linked sources as of Nov 11, 2026. Company targets are plans, not guarantees. Corrections: see About.