Silicon Valley of Drones?

Map of North Eastern North Dakota

So there is now an unofficial "Silicon Valley of drones" and it isn't where you would expect it to be...North Dakota. In North Dakota, the nation's first Unmanned Aircraft Airport is under construction. Completion is set to be in 2016. The airport itself is just 20 minutes west of Grand Forks, ND. Folks, this is a game changer for the unmanned industry for sure.

Companies such as Northrup Grumman have already signed on to lease space at the site, however, there aren't many other big names on board yet. You see, "[t]he state budget allocated $4.2 million in its 2015-17 budget for operating the test site. Of that, $1.2 million goes directly to drone companies in the form of a dollar-for-dollar matching program for those opting to partner with one of North Dakota’s research universities on a project. A related but separate program, Research North Dakota, provides up to $300,000 in matching funds for qualified firms. But there’s a catch. For major companies to fly at the test site, they have to lease their unmanned aircraft to the site so that they can fly under public domain."

 That additional aspect is likely what may have driven companies like Amazon to explore drone-delivery testing outside of the U.S in countries such as the U.K. and Canada. Amazon has put untold millions into its drone research program and has been working on it for years. "Any company developing their own aircraft will not lease that to anyone outside their company" for obvious reasons. In an age when industrial espionage is more commonplace and aggressive
than traditional state led espionage, no company can afford to put their investment's secrets out there like that. Even for a change to fly in the Silicon Valley of Drones...

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