Leadership at Aerodrome, a teaching airport and builder of a 50-acre drone airport in Boulder City, Nevada has confirmed that the site is intermittently operational.
Construction on the site, a public and commercial airport for drones broke late last year and has made steady progress. It’s hosted both Section 333 operators (those approved by the FAA to operate unmanned aircraft in the National Airspace System) and amateur racing in the first quarter of this year. Phased development is allowing the area to remain during construction and completion of the site and training facilities is expected in the next two to three years.
While there is the potential for government entities to use the airport, Aerodrome doesn’t expect it to be a significant user. Proposed services like Amazon Prime Air immediately come to mind. “The majority will be commercial and private business,” Aerodrome President Jon Daniels tells PSFK. “We can easily support the development of cargo services and other applications, and are talking with several companies about that very thing.”
Boulder City was chosen by Aerodrome as a prime location due to the weather (only six inches of rain per year and 290 days of sunshine), proximity to Las Vegas (28 mi) and favorable tax climate. The state of Nevada imposes no franchise, corporate income or personal income taxes. City officials have also reportedly been very welcoming to Aerodrome, realizing what economic benefits the company can bring to the area.
According to The Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International’s (AUVSI) Economic Report in March 2013, industry experts predict $82 billion growth in the unmanned aircraft systems (UAS field) between 2015 and 2025, generating over 100,000 new, high-paying jobs.
“The biggest challenge for us is that no one has ever created a public and commercial droneport,” Daniels informs PSFK. “Boulder City has been a fantastic partner for UAS since 2013. The weather and tax status is just icing on the cake.”
As construction continues, Aerodrome continues to recruit those interested into UAS programs. It has both e-learning and on-site courses and will eventually offer a UAS Operator Certification based on the criteria currently being established by new regulations from the FAA. Course tracks include flight training and industry-specific material for aviation maintenance and all-hazard emergency response.
“Aerodrome supports a wide variety of UAS careers: pilots, repairman, support staff and designers,” Daniels explains. “We also work with people who intend to use UAS to improve their quality of life in their current careers.”
The total cost for education varies with the track and program, but individual classes start at $2,200 with group discounts and financial aid opportunities. Once certification is achieved, Aerodrome will provide one-on-one career advising and support for its alumni at no additional cost.
Aerodrome believes these are exciting time because new authorizations are being enacted by the FAA to help the UAS industry thrive. That includes Part 107, which are the rules for small UAS under 55 lbs and expected this summer. This authorization opens the Section 333 exemptions to the public without a formal petition.
Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVLOS) is another ordinance that will extend current limitations. Currently, civil UAS must fly within Visual Line of Sight, meaning the UAS must remain in sight of the operator using no more than corrective lenses. Final details have not yet been disclosed.
To help manage this, there is new technology called Unmanned Aerial System Traffic Management (UTM). This cloud-based system will help manage traffic at low altitudes and prevent collisions of UASs being operated beyond visual line of sight. In layman’s terms, think of it as HOV lanes in the sky for small UAS below 500 feet. UTM is being developed by a group, led by NASA and 16 other collaborators.
“This wave of authorizations is on the immediate horizon,” Daniels affirms. “The future is very bright and we are very excited about it.”
Source: PSFK