(The Center Square) – Michigan plans to spend $17 million funding drone aerial infrastructure projects via the 2024 $82 billion budget.
About $10 million will fund advanced aerial mobility projects including vertiports, drone hubs and ports and last-mile delivery. Another $7 million will fund a drone park at Battle Creek Unlimited called MICH-AIR, an advanced air mobility park at the Battle Creek Executive Airport that includes about 200 acres of land available for development.
MICH-AIR will be the first facility of its kind in Michigan and serve as a hub for the advanced air mobility sector.
The $7 million will upgrade BTL’s airspace surveillance system in preparation for increased traffic from autonomous and remotely piloted aircraft. BCU has already spent $3 million on the project, which includes site preparation, land acquisition for a new entrance, engineering plans and environmental analysis.
“MICH-AIR will put Battle Creek and Michigan at forefront of the advanced air mobility sector,” BCU President & CEO Joe Sobieralski said in a statement. “This industry is rapidly expanding, and this project will have a transformative impact on our community. It will bring a new, high-tech industry to Battle Creek which will create hundreds of high-paying jobs.”
The Battle Creek Executive Airport is one of the busiest airports in the state. Its main runway measures 10,004 feet. The airport has about 200 acres available for development.
In 2019, BCI received a grant from the Michigan Defense Center to determine if Battle Creek could attract a drone company operations center.
BTL is home to aviation companies like Duncan Aviation, which operates a large aviation maintenance facility, and WACO Aerospace, which manufactures biplanes.
Western Michigan University’s College of Aviation is based at BTL and offers degree programs in aircraft operations, aircraft maintenance and airport operations.
The airport is adjacent to the Fort Custer Industrial Park, a 3,000-acre facility with nearly 90 companies and more than 13,000 employees.
Sobieralski said small drones are flown for personal recreation use, but they are developing large autonomous and remotely piloted aircrafts.
“At MICH-AIR, we will be targeting large aviation and defense manufacturers, which are developing next generation aircraft,” Sobieralski said in a statement. “These could be used for transportation, cargo delivery, border surveillance, spraying crops, or firefighting. There are all kinds of applications, for both civilian and military use. Our goal is for MICH-AIR to be a leader in the emerging sector.”
The Michigan Department of Transportation is partnering with the Canadian province of Ontario on a feasibility study to explore commercial drone opportunities.
Separately, the Michigan Supreme Court is currently deciding whether the government can use drones to surveil private property without a warrant and then use that evidence in court for zoning violations.
A federal lawsuit targets a 2015 Michigan law threatening fines of up to $1,000 and 90 days in prison for using drone-assisted “hunting,” interpreted to include using drones to locate downed game, even after the hunter has stored his weapons.
