堪萨斯州推200万美元无人机测试场补助：申请窗口今日开启
堪萨斯州副州长兼商务部长戴维·托兰德（David Toland）10月22日宣布启动"堪萨斯航空创新试验场"（AIR KS）计划，一次性投入200万美元补助，用于扩建州内无人机系统（UAS）测试场并推进超视距（BVLOS）飞行运营。申请窗口当日开启，11月22日关闭，获奖名单将于12月公布。
补助旨在降低行业发展门槛，资金可用于导航基础设施、软件升级、设备采购、专业服务与项目管理等。获补助方须在八个月内完成项目，拨款分两期发放：获奖时拨付一半，项目进度过半后再拨剩余部分。符合条件的申请人包括机场管理机构、机场赞助方、市县政府、政府实体、私营企业、非营利组织、高等院校、部落政府或其组成的联合体，须具备完成项目的技术、管理与财务能力。州商务部表示，补助将支持农业、乡村医疗、国防与新兴技术领域的商业化与投资，强化公私合作与超视距生态。托兰德称："航空航天不仅是本州经济的基石，更是我们正在建设的大胆创新未来的根基。"
Kansas Launches $2 Million Drone Test Site Grant Program: Application Window Opens Today
Kansas Lieutenant Governor and Commerce Secretary David Toland announced on October 22 the launch of the AIR KS (Air Innovation Range in Kansas) program, a one-time $2 million grant investment to expand the state's unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) test sites and advance beyond-visual-line-of-sight (BVLOS) flight operations. The application window opened the same day and closes November 22; award recipients will be announced in December.
The grants are intended to lower barriers to industry development; funds may be used for navigation infrastructure, software upgrades, equipment purchases, professional services and project management. Recipients must complete their projects within eight months, and funding will be disbursed in two tranches: half upon award and the remainder after the project passes its midpoint. Eligible applicants include airport authorities, airport sponsors, city and county governments, government entities, private companies, nonprofits, institutions of higher education, tribal governments or consortia of them, provided they have the technical, managerial and financial capacity to complete the project. The Department of Commerce said the grants will support commercialization and investment in agriculture, rural health care, defense and emerging technologies and strengthen public-private partnerships and the BVLOS ecosystem. Toland said: 'Aerospace is not only a cornerstone of our state's economy, it is the foundation of the bold, innovative future we are building.'
来源：GSM·美国（原文链接）
图片来源：飞行中的四旋翼无人机 / A quadcopter drone in flight — Josh Sorenson, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons
