The Sustainable Aviation Project is a public-private collaboration to reduce the cost of flight training through the use of all-electric

general aviation General aviation (GA) is defined by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) as all civil aviation aircraft operations with the exception of commercial air transport or aerial work, which is defined as specialized aviation services ...

airplanes.

History

The Sustainable Aviation Project was conceived by Joseph Oldham, Director of the San Joaquin Valley Clean Transportation Center, and developed with Richard Duncan, manager of

Fresno Chandler Executive Airport Fresno Chandler Executive Airport is a public use airport west of the central business district of Fresno, California, United States. It is owned by the City of Fresno and managed by the city’s Airports Division. Chandler Airport opened in N ...

. A private pilot for over forty years, Mr Oldham's professional work developing clean transportation collaborations between businesses and government combined with the introduction of the Alpha Electro all-electric airplane by

Pipistrel Pipistrel d.o.o Ajdovščina is a Slovenian light aircraft manufacturer established in 1989Or 1989... --> by Ivo Boscarol and based in Ajdovščina. Its facilities are located in Ajdovščina, Slovenia, and near the town of Gorizia, Italy. By Ma ...

lead to the realization that a similar collaboration could be used to reduce the relatively high cost of flight training and bring new opportunities to youth in the

San Joaquin Valley The San Joaquin Valley ( ; es, Valle de San Joaquín) is the area of the Central Valley of the U.S. state of California that lies south of the Sacramento–San Joaquin River Delta and is drained by the San Joaquin River. It comprises seven c ...

. A grant through the Fresno Council of Governments New Technology Reserve Fund Grant program was won to fund the effort. The organizations involved with executing the Sustainable Aviation Project include the City of Reedley, City of Mendota,

Reedley College Reedley College (Reedley or RC) is a public community college in Reedley, California. It is a part of the California Community Colleges system within the State Center Community College District (SCCCD). It is accredited by the WASC Accrediting ...

, Mazzei Flying Service, the Fresno Business Council, and the CALSTART San Joaquin Valley Clean Transportation Center. Mr Oldham presented an update regarding the project to the Reedley Airport Commission on January 19, 2017 where the project was warmly received.
The four initial airport locations are:

Reedley Municipal Airport Reedley Municipal Airport , sometimes referred to in shorthand but not officially as RMA, is a public airport located four miles (6.4 km) north of Reedley, serving southeast Fresno County and northeast Tulare County, California, USA. History of ...

(O32)
William Robert Johnston Municipal Airport in Mendota (M90)

(KFCH)

Fresno Yosemite International Airport Fresno Yosemite International Airport is a joint military/public airport in Fresno, California, United States. It is the primary commercial airport for the San Joaquin Valley and three national parks: Yosemite, Sequoia and Kings Canyon. It o ...

(KFAT)

References

External links

* {{official website, https://www.sustainableaviationproject.com/ General aviation Aviation websites