Kansas Launches $2 Million Drone Test Site Grant Program: Application Window Opens Today
Kansas Lieutenant Governor and Commerce Secretary David Toland announced on October 22 the launch of the AIR KS (Air Innovation Range in Kansas) program, a one-time $2 million grant investment to expand the state's unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) test sites and advance beyond-visual-line-of-sight (BVLOS) flight operations. The application window opened the same day and closes November 22; award recipients will be announced in December.
The grants are intended to lower barriers to industry development; funds may be used for navigation infrastructure, software upgrades, equipment purchases, professional services and project management. Recipients must complete their projects within eight months, and funding will be disbursed in two tranches: half upon award and the remainder after the project passes its midpoint. Eligible applicants include airport authorities, airport sponsors, city and county governments, government entities, private companies, nonprofits, institutions of higher education, tribal governments or consortia of them, provided they have the technical, managerial and financial capacity to complete the project. The Department of Commerce said the grants will support commercialization and investment in agriculture, rural health care, defense and emerging technologies and strengthen public-private partnerships and the BVLOS ecosystem. Toland said: 'Aerospace is not only a cornerstone of our state's economy, it is the foundation of the bold, innovative future we are building.'
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 飞行中的四旋翼无人机 / A quadcopter drone in flight — Josh Sorenson, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons
