An organization that focuses on the state of the aerospace industry today and looking to the future has scheduled its annual event to bring industry experts to Augusta.
The Skyworx Innovation Exchange is set for March 13 at the Hull McKnight Building at the Georgia Cyber Innovation and Training Center. The goal is to showcase new aerospace technologies with presentations from diverse groups in the industry.
“We have an original equipment manufacturer for the Advanced Air Mobility, which we have the acronym AAM for, and it’s just the new technologies coming up, and it’s how people are going to be able to travel in the future in these vehicles,” Diane Johnson, Director of Business Development at Augusta Regional Airport, explained for ABD. “Right now, they’re electric vehicles for the most part, but that could be hybrid in the future, and it also includes the unmanned aerial system (UAS), which could be drones.”
This is the sixth annual Skyworx event. It was at the March 2024 gathering that the agreement between SkyDrive and Bravo Air was announced. Bravo Air signed a letter of intent to purchase up to five of the company’s short-range air taxis. Those can carry a pilot and two passengers within a range of nine miles with a full charge. The air taxi can take off and land vertically, creating the need for just a small landing zone.
Johnson said the Skyworx Innovation Exchange building at the airport is an aerospace business incubator. It started out with a focus on drones and UAS but then decided to broaden its reach.
“We want to be aerospace totally, so that would be all-inclusive and would give us a broader reach for the incubator to begin with,” said Johnson. “But it is focused. We’re not trying to infringe on any of the other incubators, like theClubhou.se downtown. Our focus is because we’re an airport, and we have access to a lot of aviation information and assets, like our air traffic control tower, like our runway systems, like flight instructors, and that kind of thing.”
The incubator is owned by the city of Augusta-Richmond County. Its mission is to encourage innovation in the aerospace industry by providing shared workspace for entrepreneurs and startups with ideas for new ventures.
The Skyworx website lists six goals:
- Create aerospace jobs in the Augusta-Aiken MSA
- Help to diversify the local economy
- Encourage new capital investment in the region
- Improve the long-term success rate for new aerospace businesses in the region
- Create opportunities for students, ex-military, and Savannah River Site (SRS) retirees
- Create a climate of collaboration & networking
It is also a collaborative effort connecting Augusta Regional with the Georgia Department of Transportation and the Department of Economic Development.
Johnson said it is part of the ongoing mission to strengthen the airport, keeping it an important driver of the region’s economic development.
“If you can’t get in and out of this city, it’s pretty hard to run your business. You got to be able to get your parts, your support, whatever it is for your business,” she said. “You got to be able to bring in your customers. You got to be able to send out your salespeople. Your employees must be able to get their families in and out as needed.”
More information about Skyworx and the list of speakers for the March 13 event is available at https://skyworxinnovation.com/.
