Preliminary Agenda


Monday, October 7

4:30 pm - 7:30 pm UAS Summit & Expo Opening Reception at Grand Sky
*Must Be Registered

Tuesday, October 8
*Central Daylight Time Zone

7:30 am - 6:15 pm Expo Open
7:30 am - 8:30 am Breakfast and Customer Client Networking
View Breakfast Menu
General Session Sponsored By
   
8:30 am - 9:30 am Discussion with U.S. Senator John Hoeven
Ballroom
  • Katie Thomson, Deputy Administrator, Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)
  • Major General David Stewart, Director, Counter-Unmanned Aircraft Systems Office/Director of Fires, Office of the Deputy Chief of Staff, United States Army
  • RECORDED COMMENTS: Dr. William LaPlante, Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment, U.S. Department of Defense
9:30 am - 9:50 am Grand Forks Air Force Base Presentation
Ballroom
  • Colonel Bishane "Doc" Whitmore, 319th Reconnaissance Wing Deputy Commander, Grand Forks Air Force Base
9:50 am - 10:20 am Discussion with the Test Resource Management Center and General Atomics
Ballroom
  • George Rumford, Director, Department of Defense (DoD) Test Resource Management Center (TRMC)
  • Jeff Hettick, Vice President of Agile Mission Systems, General Atomics
10:20 am - 10:40 am Concurrent Panels
RQ-4 and Firebee: A History of Autonomy with Deep Connections to Grand Forks
Ballroom
  • Stan Zipper, Director, RQ-4 program, Northrop Grumman Corporation
Advanced Air Mobility (AAM) is coming to a town near you… Are you ready?
Breakout Room
  • Sarah Nilsson, Professor, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University
10:40 am - 11:00 am Concurrent Panels
Progress in Autonomous Reusable Hypersonic Flight Test Services
Ballroom
  • Zachary Krevor, President & CEO, Stratolaunch
Value of Intrusive ISR for Targeting in Contested Environments
Breakout Room
  • Daniel Katz, Principal, Strategy and Requirements, Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Advanced Development Programs (“Skunk Works”)
11:00 am - 12:30 pm Concurrent Panels
11:00 am - 12:15 pm State/AAM Frameworks and Future Planning Governance
Ballroom
  • Trevor Woods, Executive Director, Northern Plains UAS Test Site (NPUASTS)
  • Tom Swoyer, Founder & President, Grand Sky
  • Shawn Bullard, CEO, Duetto Group
  • Christopher Starr, State Aviation Manager, Tennessee Department of Transportation
  • Robert Corder, Vice President of Attraction, Battle Creek Unlimited
12:15 pm - 12:30 pm The Role of US Autonomous Systems in the Future Character of War
Ballroom
  • Jen Stewart, Executive Vice President, Strategy & Policy, National Defense Industrial Association (NDIA)
Cross-Sector Applications that are Bridging Military and Commercial UAS
Breakout Room
    Moderator: Matt Dunlevy, President, North Dakota Unmanned Aircraft Systems Council
    • Kraettli Epperson, CEO, Vigilant Aerospace Systems, Inc.
      Adapting and Enhancing a Detect-and-Avoid System for Drones: From Commercial Product to Military Product and Back Again to Dual-Use
    • Jonathan Baker, Lead UAS Operator, Modern Technology Solutions, Inc. (MTSI)
      RCS-Controlled Aerial Targets & Payload Testing with High-Speed Autonomous Platforms
    • Danny Rajan, General Manager, United States, D-Fend Solutions
      Different Uncrewed System Sectors, Applications, and Use Cases Demand Different Defensive C-UAS Countermeasures
    • Michael Roche, Global Defense Marketing Manager, Dedrone
      Analyzing the Rapidly-Changing National Defense Industry
12:30 pm - 1:30 pm Networking Lunch - Dedicated Expo Time
View Lunch Menu
12:40 pm – 1:00 pm Considerations for UAS in Severely Cold Temperatures
INNOVATION STAGE - EXPO
  • Holly Anderson, CEO, Elinor Coatings and the Aurora Center for Extreme Weather Materials
1:10 pm – 1:30 pm Hybrid AI-Powered Navigation for UAV
INNOVATION STAGE - EXPO
  • Bryan Sardoch, Director, Safety and Defense Projects, Bavovna.ai
1:30 pm – 3:00 pm Concurrent Panels
AI and Autonomy Enabling UAS
Ballroom
    Moderator: Nicholas Flom, Specialist Leader, Deloitte Consulting, LLC
    • Frank Matus, Director of ATC & Digital Aviation Solutions, Thales
    • Matt Dunlevy, CEO, Aethero
    • Ashish Kapoor, CEO & Co-Founder, Scaled Foundations
    • Chris O'Keefe, CEO, Restless Creation
1:30 pm - 2:15 pm Project ULTRA - UAS, Logistics, Traffic, Response, Autonomy
Breakout Room
Moderator: Dawn Zoldi, Founder and CEO, P3 Tech Consulting LLC
  • Michelle A. Duquette, Outcome Leader: Unmanned Aircraft Systems and Space, The MITRE Corporation
  • Chris Hewlett, Director, Project ULTRA, Grand Sky
  • Trevor Woods, Executive Director, Northern Plains UAS Test Site (NPUASTS)
2:15 pm - 3:00 pm What the UAS industry Needs to Learn from the Conflict in Ukraine
Breakout Room
Moderator: Bill Daggett, Managing Director, Delta Advisory Group
  • Olga Pogoda, Chief Operating Officer, KEF Robotics
  • Bryan Sardoch, Director, Safety and Defense Projects, Bavovna.ai
  • Mark Lindquist, Owner, Mark J Lindquist Enterprises, Inc.
3:00 pm - 3:30 pm Networking Break - Dedicated Expo Time
View Refreshment Break Menu
3:10 pm - 3:30 pm Bridging Warfighters and Manufacturers with Innovative Drone Solutions
INNOVATION STAGE - EXPO
  • Chris O'Keefe, CEO, Restless Creation
3:30 pm - 5:00 pm Concurrent Panels
FAA UAS and AAM Integration Offices Working Together - What Does That Look Like for Industry?
Ballroom

Moderator: Michelle A. Duquette, Outcome Leader: Unmanned Aircraft Systems and Space, The MITRE Corporation
  • Jodi Baker, Deputy Associate Administrator for Aviation Safety, Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)
  • Jeffrey Vincent, Executive Director, Unmanned Aircraft Systems Integration, Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)
Pioneering Advanced Communication and Connectivity Architectures for UAS
Breakout Room
Moderator: Lenny Richoux, Strategic Business Capture-Principal, Modern Technology Solutions, Inc (MTSI)
  • Kevin Beer, Vice President of Global Network Solutions, Viasat Government
    Advancements in UAS Communication Technologies: Practical Applications and Insights
  • Joe Darden, Director, Aviation, Iridium Communications, Inc.
    Scalable BVLOS Operations: The Next Chapter
  • John Taibi, VP, Aerospace & Defense, Cambridge Consultants
    Deep Tech Capabilities for the Future UAS Market
5:00 pm - 6:15 pm Networking Reception - Dedicated Expo Time
View Reception Menu
5:00 pm - 5:20 pm Visual Autonomy for Aircraft
INNOVATION STAGE - EXPO
  • Olga Pogoda, Chief Operating Officer, KEF Robotics
Reception at the Hive Sponsored By
       
6:15 pm Buzzing at the Hive - Learn More
Location: The Hive – Free Event

Wednesday, October 9
*Central Daylight Time Zone

8:00 am - 9:00 am Breakfast and Customer Client Networking
View Breakfast Menu
8:00 am - 5:00 pm Expo Open
9:00 am Welcome & Awards
  • John Nelson, Vice President of Operations, Marketing & Sales, BBI International
9:00 am - 10:00 am Discussion with U.S. Senator Kevin Cramer
  • Palmer Luckey, Founder, Anduril Industries
10:00 am - 10:20 am Concurrent Panels
The University of North Dakota’s Continued Expansion of its Work in UAS and Autonomy
Ballroom
  • Andrew Armacost, President, University of North Dakota
The Ramp-to-Volume Challenge: Manufacturing Technology and Supply Chain Security
Breakout Room
  • John Ibele, COO, Meadowlark Aircraft Company
10:20 am - 11:20 am Research, Workforce, and National Security Update from UND Leadership
Ballroom
  • Mark Askelson, Associate Vice President for Research—National Security, University of North Dakota
  • Paul Snyder, Assistant Chair / Director of UAS Program, John D. Odegard School of Aerospace Sciences, University of North Dakota
  • Ryan Adams, Associate Dean National Security/ Professor, College of Engineering & Mines, University of North Dakota
  • Renee Shelton, Associate Vice President of Corporate & Foundation Relations, UND Alumni Association & Foundation
  • Terri Zimmerman, CEO, Packet Digital
  • Eric Waters, Director of Aviation and UxS, NAL Research Corporation
  • Dean Gorder, Director, General Atomics
10:20 am - 11:50 am Creating an Effective B.A.I.L. Team
Breakout Room
  • Stacey Mesteth, Risk Manager, BridgeMark Insurance Solutions Inc
  • Chris Wolf, CPA, Commercial Banking Executive and Regional President, Alerus Financial
  • Faye Pederson, President, F Pederson Consulting LLC,
  • Lacee Anderson, CEO & Founder, The Birch Group, LLC
11:20 am - 11:40 am Navigating UAS Innovation: Where Technology, Collaboration, and Success Converge
Ballroom
  • Aaron Pierce, CEO, Pierce Aerospace Inc.
  • Brandon Lewis, Project Manager, Northern Plains UAS Test Site (NPUASTS)
  • Cortnee Jensen, Executive Director of Strategic Partnerships, University of North Dakota
11:40 am - 12:10 pm B4UFLY, LAANC Updates, and Advancing Automation
Ballroom
  • Suzanne Koppanen, Enterprise UAS Services Manager, Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)
11:50 am - 12:10 am The Future is Drones
Breakout Room
  • Kaleb Dschaak, CEO, Fenworks
12:10 pm - 12:30 pm Concurrent Panels
2024 FAA Reauthorization: Impacts on Commercial Drone Usage, Government Drone Usage, Counter UAS, and Drone R&D
Ballroom
  • Max Rosen, Director, Government Affairs, Association for Uncrewed Vehicle Systems International (AUVSI)
The Importance of Manufacturing High Performance UAS Battery Cells in the United States
Breakout Room
  • Terri Zimmerman, CEO, Packet Digital
12:30 pm - 1:30 pm Networking Lunch - Dedicated Expo Time
View Lunch Menu
12:40 pm – 1:00 pm Autonomous Systems Simulation for Guidance, Navigation and Control
INNOVATION STAGE - EXPO
  • Jeff Blackburn, Senior Sales Engineer, Ansys, Inc.
1:10 pm - 1:30 pm Evaluating Defense Levels
INNOVATION STAGE - EXPO
  • Lt. Gen. David Deptula, Dean, Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies
1:30 pm - 3:00 pm Concurrent Panels
Harnessing and Fusing Data from UAS and Other Sources for Transportation Infrastructure Management
Ballroom

Moderator: Denver Tolliver, Director, Upper Great Plains Transportation Institute
  • Raj Bridgelall, Associate Professor of Transportation and Supply Chain, North Dakota State University (NDSU)
  • Russ Buchholz, Innovation Manager, NDDOT
  • Sattar Dorafshan, Director of Transportation Technology Research Institute, and UND Center of Transformative Infrastructure Preservation and Sustainability and Assistant Professor of Civil Engineering, University of North Dakota
  • Victor Meyers, President, Red River Valley and Western Railroad
Big Data Transforming UAS: Enhancing Efficiency, Accuracy, and Navigation
Breakout Room
Moderator: Lenny Richoux, Strategic Business Capture-Principal, Modern Technology Solutions, Inc (MTSI)
  • Karthik Balaji, Head of Technology and Product Development, Aethero
    From Manual to Aerial – UAS Ushers in a New Era of Building Efficiency
  • Jason Pendlum, Business Development Manager, Honeywell Aerospace
    HALAS data for UAS Operations Planning
  • Dr. Steve Snarski, Technical Fellow, Modern Technology Solutions, Inc. (MTSI)
    Test and Evaluation of AI-enabled Autonomous Systems
3:00 pm - 3:30 pm Networking Break - Dedicated Expo Time
View Refreshment Break Menu
3:10 pm - 3:30pm Defending Intellectual Property for UAS
INNOVATION STAGE - EXPO
  • Tom Kading, Founder, Fargo Patent and Business Law
3:30 pm - 5:00 pm Concurrent Panels
Enhancing Food Security through UAS and AI: Combating Invasive Weeds in ND
Ballroom
    Moderator: Greta Silewski, Project Consultant, Thales
    • Doug McDonald, Flight Operations Manager, ISight RPV Services
    • Nathan Marcotte, Senior Program Manager, Grand Farm
    • Dr. Xin (Rex) Sun, Associate Professor / UAS Faculty Fellow, North Dakota State University (NDSU)
    • Erin Roesler, Deputy Executive Director, Northern Plains UAS Test Site (NPUASTS)
Driving UAS Efficiency with Droneports, Vertiports, and Autonomous Docking Systems
Breakout Room
    Moderator: Erik Amend, Regional Administrator, Great Lakes Region, Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)
    • Craig Mahaney, CEO, DronePort Network
      Regional Droneport Infrastructure Development to Support UAS Commercial Scalability
    • Collin Kemmesat, Unmanned Technical Sales, Frontier Precision, Inc.
      Docking into the world of Autonomy
    • Mike DiCosola, CEO, Drone Industry Systems Corp.
      Vertiports, Droneports, and Intelligent Infrastructure Requires Public Private Integration
5:00 pm Sessions Conclude
5:00 pm - 7:00 pm Gorman Field Reception - Learn More
Location: Gorman Field, 1209 24th Street NE, Emerado, ND See Map – Free Event
RSVP to Anna Perez at aaperez@undaerospace.com

Platinum Level Sponsors

Gold Level Sponsors

Supporting Organizations

Media Partners

Produced By