SALT LAKE CITY — The future of flight appears poised for takeoff in Utah, with influential leaders at the state and federal level voicing their support and detailing their efforts to bring air mobility to the Beehive State during Utah aerospace and defense company 47G’s inaugural Project Alta Summit.

The summit convenes aviation and transit experts at national and global levels with a shared goal of bringing electric and autonomous aircraft into operational use across transportation networks, emergency medical response and critical logistics systems.

Day 1 of the summit wrapped up with a conversation between Carlos Braceras, executive director of the Utah Department of Transportation and Utah Rep. Mike Kennedy.

Braceras opened by telling Kennedy a story about a trip he took to Singapore in 2019 for the Intelligent Transport Systems World Congress. While there, he had the chance not just to sit in, but to fly an aircraft reminiscent of the air taxis showcased by Project ALTA.

“After 2019, I thought, you know, we’re right on the cusp of this becoming something that we all use every day, all day long,” Braceras said. “As I look at where we are right now … I’m a little frustrated with the lack of speed there has been in this idea of the connected autonomous vehicle.”

Braceras pointed out that his main draw toward autonomous air mobility is the impact it could have on crashes and accidents that claim the lives of some 40,000 Americans annually.

He added that he sees Utah as the place where autonomous aircraft will, quite literally, get off the ground — a sentiment shared by Kennedy.

Kennedy noted that at the federal level, policy is quite hard to advance, even saying that the system is “designed to slow things down and destroy things.” He doesn’t think Utah suffers from the same affliction.

“What we have in Utah, though, is an organized, orchestrated willingness to work together, Democrats and Republicans. As a state legislator for 10 years, I saw this regularly. We were willing to work together for the common good of our people,” Kennedy said.

When it comes to air mobility, Kennedy said Utah benefits from an ecosystem where its politicians at the state and federal levels are eager to work with the state’s universities, businesses, military bases and agencies like UDOT to advance the air mobility mission.

The Federal Aviation Administration in March selected Utah as one of eight projects nationwide for the Electric Vertical Takeoff and Landing Integration Pilot Program, a three-year initiative designed to help safely integrate advanced aircraft into the national airspace.

“We were given one of those spaces, even though we’re small. And the reason why we were given that is because not only are we willing to unite together, but we are a forward-looking people. We care about the future. We see the future,” Kennedy said.

As part of the program and through an initiative called “uFly,” Utah will lead a collaboration between Oregon, Idaho, Arizona and Oklahoma — along with industry partners and research institutions — to test new aviation technology and gather data that will inform the future of electric flight.

Partners with UDOT in the initiative include Beta Technologies, Ampaire, Joby Aviation, Lockheed Martin, Future Flight Global, Alpine Air, Jump Aero and Utah aerospace and defense company 47G.

Braceras emphasized not letting “perfect be our enemy” when it comes to the buildout of air mobility systems.

Kennedy echoed this feeling, saying overregulation could lead to “international adversaries like China” outpacing the U.S. when it comes to developing air mobility.

“That is not going to be good for our national security,” Kennedy warned.

The summit will conclude on Wednesday. A full lineup of speakers and events can be found here.

SALT LAKE CITY — Utahns can never be described as “basic,” but that quality is at the root of the most troublesome word for state residents to spell.

Basically… it’s basically.

According to Unscramblerer.com, the word “basically” is the one that trips up Utahns the most. Not mischievous, acquiesce, onomatopoeia or… yes… bougie. (Actually, bougie was the most misspelled word in all of America.)

To find the most difficult words for each state’s residents to pronounce, the site used Google Trends and Ahrefs.

List of America’s Most Misspellled Words:

1. Bougie
2. Favorite
3. Through
4. Business
5. Tomorrow
6. Because
7. Definitely
8. Beautiful
9. Niece
10. Separate

A mom to two missing Utah boys has issued a desperate plea amid fears they may have been snatched by their dad, whom authorities have previously described as “seriously depressed.”

Lizzie Tomich’s voice cracked in a social media video as she begged for the safe return of Will Richman, 1, and 10-month-old Wesley, both of whom were last seen on May 16.

“Please, like, share, repost everything,” she said in the video.

Tomich co-parents her two children with Dane Stephen Richman, who lives in Utah, and he collected the brothers from her Sheldon, Washington, home as part of a routine custody exchange but he failed to return them a week later.

Richman, 46, reportedly told Tomich he and the boys were camping, but he pulled out of a deposition custody hearing on Friday, raising alarm.

A welfare check was carried out at Richman’s Saratoga Springs home before authorities issued an Amber Alert.

“At that point, we called the police to do a welfare check on him,” Tomich said.

“When the police arrived, we learned that the house was vacant and there were things being moved out. 

“There was no car and Dane and the boys were not home. When we learned this, we knew something was wrong.”

Tomich shared messages she exchanged with Richman, where she asked, “Where are you? Where are the kids right now?”

“With me, I’m driving,” Richman supposedly replied before saying they were “camping.”

Tomich then revealed she arrived at the supposed meet-up location 15 minutes earlier than planned.

“As the time approached, I began calling and texting him asking for an ETA. He did not respond. At, approximately 12: 01 p.m. is when I began to panic and when we called police,” she said.

Tomich’s family lawyer, Brittany Skinner, then interjected, adding, “After further investigation with the police, we learned that Dane’s quit his job.

“He’s sold almost all of his possessions. He has left with almost everything he has, with the clear intention of not returning with these children.”

Tomich’s voice cracked as she begged, “Please, like, share, repost everything, share with your family, share with your friends, anybody you know, they could be anywhere. Please,” revealing that her sons have “infectious smiles.. dimples and blue eyes.”

Richman has been charged with custodial interference, a third-degree felony, but authorities fear he may have crossed into Mexico, KTVX reported.

Cops suspect Richman was likely in Carlsbad, California, on May 18 – and crossed the border the following day.

Authorities said “There is concern for the safety and well-being of the children as the suspect has been seriously depressed, selling possessions, facing financial stress, and abandoned his home,” as they issued the Amber Alert.

But when cops were carrying out the welfare check, it’s since emerged they stopped a “moving truck,” Katie Walters, the brothers’ aunt told KTVX.

“He had completely moved out of his house that the children were supposed to be living in, and the moving truck was just actually pulling out of the driveway, and the police were able to stop the moving truck, and they asked what’s going on,” she said.

“They said they didn’t even know because they never even saw the owner of the home while they were there. They only were communicating via text.”

Addressing Richman, she said, “To Dane, just please be safe. We love you and we love those kids.”

Richman is reportedly driving a black Toyota Camry that has a Utah license plate A561HL, but cops suspect the car is a newer model and it could have a temporary tag.