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.
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