UxS Route and Corridor Planning Grant Award

“We’re very excited about this GO Virginia Planning Grant award.  VISA pursued this opportunity as part of our mission in to foster the autonomous systems ecosystem in the greater Hampton Roads region through growth, talent, and innovation. It also complements our partnership with the VIPC Unmanned Systems Center, where we are currently finalizing a Regional Autonomous Systems Strategic playbook which will help guide the region on needs, opportunities, key actions, and potential investments. This award represents one of first “plays” in that playbook and will provide the resources to gather the various entities across our region to begin planning for the broader, multi-domain operational use of autonomous systems.” David Bowles, Virginia Institute for Spaceflight & Autonomy

“This planning grant was proposed to Reinvent Hampton Roads who administers the Go Va. grant opportunities for our region. Jim Spore, Donna Morris, and the entire Go Va. Region 5 Council do a great job ensuring that proposals meet key metrics to help our region diversify and grow. Also, a special thanks must go to the Cities of Hampton and Norfolk who saw the value in this proposal and provided the necessary funding match and letters of support to meet the proposal submittal criteria. Without that support and funding match, we would not have been able to submit this proposal. Because our region is a highly complex multimodal transportation environment, this UxS route and corridor study will require us to work across the Federal labs like NASA, Military, Localities, Industry, and Academia in our region. Our plan over the next 9-12 months is to form focus groups, conduct workshops, and develop analyses to help understand the uses and needs, capabilities, risks, and barriers, that will help us conceptually formulate routes, corridors, along with the tracking, communications, and data-sharing infrastructure to support UxS operations in the future. Our end goal is to hopefully generate a concept (doesn’t mean THE Concept) that enables a regional approach to the broad operational use of UxS to move people, goods, and provide services in the future.” John Costulis, Virginia Institute for Spaceflight & Autonomy

“The results of the UxS Route and Corridor planning grant will be essential to leverage research, innovation, and workforce support for industry partners across a broad spectrum of domains, including the maritime ecosystem. The strategic playbook being developed will expand economic opportunity and build upon existing regional and statewide assets including the Port of Virginia, offshore wind energy, the Navy, shipbuilding and ship repair, and cybersecurity. This planning grant will inform and solidify the effort underway to create an Autonomous Systems National Hub in GO Virginia Region 5. It will also build upon other GO Virginia-supported projects like the Eastern Virginia Regional Industrial Facility Authority (EVRIFA), the Eastern Shore Hydro Drone Project, and the Offshore Wind Supply Chain Hub Development Program. This project fully aligns with the region’s updated Economic Growth and Diversification Plan.” Jim Spore, Reinvent Hampton Roads

“The VIPC Unmanned Systems Center is delighted that Go Virginia has chosen to invest in a Planning Grant for the growth of Unmanned Systems in the Commonwealth. The development of this type of plan is critical to the operation, and integration of autonomous systems throughout Hampton Roads and other Regions of Virginia. ODU-VISA are valuable partners in the Hampton Roads Region that help industry, government, and academic entities contribute to the growth and development of the Autonomous Systems sector.” Tracy Tynan, CIT-VIPC