Kansas Department of Transportation
After unveiling the Kansas Advanced Air Mobility (AAM) Roadmap on September 18 in Wichita, the Kansas Department of Transportation’s Division of Aviation, Kansas Department of Commerce and other aviation industry stakeholders are ready to create new ways to enhance mobility, drive economic growth, expand access to multimodal transportation and more across the state.
The roadmap outlines a statewide strategy to leverage emerging aviation technology to address transportation challenges and enhance multimodal connectivity.
Expanding aviation opportunities is not just a benefit for airports. “Hospitals can benefit from receiving medical deliveries, transporting staff and increasing air ambulance access, especially to rural communities,” said KDOT Director of Aviation Ray Seif. “Precision agriculture, infrastructure inspection and public safety are just some of the other ways that can benefit Kansans.”
With 146 public airports, a large aviation workforce and three universities leading the nation in aviation research as well as manufacturing, maintenance and parts suppliers, Kansas is poised to be an emerging technology powerhouse.
“There’s going to be a big push to improve aviation technology, which is vital for national security,” Seif said. “Being a leader at this stage is important for the country and also can immensely benefit the state’s economy from opportunities already rolling in.”
“Come to Kansas to test and stay here to build,” said Brian Kassin, Chief of Strategic Plans and Programs in KDOT’s Division of Aviation. “As soon as a firm gets a foothold in the state, they recognize Kansas has a unique value that others don’t, and they want to stay.”
The roadmap identifies lead stakeholders and actionable workstreams with near, mid-term, and long-term activities to help guide efforts statewide.
Government, academia and industry formed the Emerging Aviation Technology Working Group to develop the statewide AAM strategy to collaborate and be a collective voice for Kansas. The working group will be instrumental for roadmap implementation. Monthly meetings are virtual with recordings posted on KDOT Aviation’s YouTube channel.
For more information, visit https://aviation.ks.gov/aam.html to review the roadmap, email [email protected], or call 785-296-2553 with questions.