THIS WEEK’S KEY QUESTION

“What’s New at the Northern Plains UAS Test Site? 

THIS WEEK’S GUESTS

Trevor Woods is Executive Director of the Northern Plains UAS Test Site. The Northern Plains UAS Test Site was founded by the North Dakota Department of Commerce in 2013 as one of 7 FAA-designated UAS Test Sites. Its mission is to collaborate with FAA and industry partners to develop equipment, systems, rules, and procedures to safely integrate unmanned aircraft into the National Airspace System without negatively impacting existing general or commercial aviation. 

Trevor has been with Northern Plains UAS Test Site since its inception, most recently as director of safety, working extensively with the FAA. He was instrumental to North Dakota being selected as one of ten participants in the UAS Integration Pilot Program, now the BEYOND program. He participates in the FAA’s Unmanned Aircraft Safety Team and served as the Lead on the FAA’s BVLOS ARC Working Group 2.1. Trevor also played a pivotal role in the inception of Vantis, North Dakota’s beyond visual line of sight initiative. In January 2022, Trevor was named Executive Director. He was the natural choice to take over as executive director and lead the test site into the next stage of making the impossible possible. 

WHAT WE LEARN

Trevor talks about the Northern Plains UAS Test Site and gives us an update on Vantis and other initiatives where they’re leading in UAS operations and integration.