Drone Park Planned for Battle Creek Executive Airport to Receive $7M in State Funding

The 200-acre site will support urban and advanced air mobility manufacturing, operations, maintenance, repair, training, and more.

Jack Daleo

Tuesday, August 08, 2023 at 01:39 PM ET

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Duncan Aviation’s maintenance hub at Battle Creek Executive Airport. [Courtesy: Duncan Aviation]

Key Takeaways:

MICH-AIR, a 200-acre advanced air mobility (AAM) hub planned for Michigan's Battle Creek Executive Airport, has secured $7 million in the state's 2024 budget, making its development a "sure thing."
The facility is designed to attract large aviation and defense manufacturers for unmanned aerial systems (UAS) and electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) manufacturing, operations, maintenance, and training.
It aims to create hundreds of high-paying jobs and position Battle Creek and Michigan at the forefront of the rapidly expanding AAM industry, distinct from recreational drone parks.

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California has Silicon Valley. North Carolina has the Research Triangle. And soon, Michigan will have MICH-AIR.

In development since 2018, the proposed 200-acre “drone park” now looks like a sure thing after Battle Creek Unlimited (BCU), the nonprofit business and economic development arm for the city of Battle Creek, received a $7 million allocation in the state’s 2024 budget. Now, the site at 97-year-old Battle Creek Executive Airport (KBTL) could serve as a hub for the emerging advanced air mobility (AAM) industry.