Joseph Block, Advanced Air Mobility Manager at the Minnesota Department of Transportation, reports in a Linkedin post that the state has submitted a proposal for an eVTOL and AAM Integration Pilot Program (eIPP) titled Project BEACON (Building Electric Aviation Cargo Operations in the North).
“Project BEACON represents what we believe is one of the most practical proposals to enable near-term AAM operations in the Upper Midwest, said the post. “The Project BEACON represents a consortium of states (North Dakota, Wisconsin, and Minnesota) working together to enable real-world, all weather commercial AAM cargo operations. The Project BEACON team is composed of 18 team partners spanning states, industry, academia, and airport partners all with focused roles and contributions to the pilot programme.”
The team includes
- Ampaire, the OEM partner bringing its hybrid-electric AMP propulsion system integrated onto a Cessna 208B to the pilot programme for a rapid deployment immediately upon start.
- BETA TECHNOLOGIES is the “charge” team partner and GREATER MSP Partnership is the sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) partner for low emissions hybrid-electric aircraft operations.
- Bemidji Aviation is the Part 135 cargo airline partner working closely with UPS and DigiKey to integrate Ampaire’s Eco Caravan into real-world cargo operations across the Upper Midwest.
- To support all weather operations, Climavision will be sharing real-time low-altitude weather data with project partners using radar installed in Wendell, MN and future radars in Minnesota.
- University of North Dakota will support with data collection, analysis, and reporting helping to generate key regulatory insights. Center for Transportation Studies, University of Minnesota will lead the overall programme administration, team coordination, and economic research.
- St Cloud Technical and Community College, Northland Community and Technical College and the National Center for Autonomous Technologies (NCAT) will lead a focused effort to develop A&P curriculum and support project workforce development opportunities.
For more information
https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:7408914261902819328/