FutureFlight
Ohio Offers New Funding For Research Partnerships
Companies are required to partner with Ohio-based colleges and organizations on work due to start in May 2021.
BVLOS testing in Springfield
Springfield-Beckley Municipal Airport in Ohio is available for development work on Beyond Visual Line of Sight operations for autonomous aircraft. (Image: Parallax Advanced Research)

The Ohio Federal Research Network (OFRN) is inviting companies and other organizations to bid for funding under the Sustaining Ohio’s Aeronautical Readiness and Innovation in the Next Generation (SOARING) initiative. $15 million is on offer for project teams that must include at least two Ohio colleges or universities and at least one company based in the state. Each company could be awarded between $750,000 and $2 million. 

For the Round 5 SOARING initiative, the main areas of interest include artificial intelligence for vertical takeoff and landing aircraft, human-machine teaming, data analytics, and advanced power systems. Applications must be submitted by 5 p.m. on February 25, 2021.