MnDOT Aeronautics kicked off the Minnesota Electric Aviation Network (MEAN) Study in November 2024. The study aims to identify a strategic network of Minnesota public-use airports that are suitable to support electric aircraft operations and aviation use cases pertinent to the state’s economy over the next decade. The results of the MEAN Study will highlight opportunities that exist for electric aviation and guide future infrastructure development in Minnesota.
MnDOT recently completed six workshops across the state to engage with airport managers, sponsors, users, tenants, and electric utilities to share additional information about the current state of electric aviation, MEAN study tasks, and gather initial feedback to guide the study. Workshops were held in St. Paul, Marshall, Alexandria, Bemidji, Duluth, and Rochester. Over 80 stakeholders representing cities, counties, airports, the FAA, consulting firms, utilities, flight schools, air ambulance service providers, fixed based operators, associations, and other state aviation agencies participated.
The workshops reflected a general sense of optimism for electric aircraft technologies potential impacts and future integration into the National Airspace System. With that optimism also came many concerns which include high utility bills from power demand charges, fire and safety concerns with aircraft chargers, cable management on the ramp or apron, insurance rates for electric aircraft, access to heated hangars for storage, hangar building codes, battery performance and lifecycle, impacts to workforce, and more. The goal of the workshops was not to answer every question, but to start the conversation around electric aviation in Minnesota and collect these questions for future research and investigation.
The workshops also complement the MEAN Study survey which was sent to airport sponsors and managers to complete. The survey aimed to gather some initial information about airports including access to heated hangars, airport rescue and fire fighting capabilities, permission to work with the local utility, and initial thoughts around electric aviation at the airport. MnDOT Aeronautics received 91 survey responses.
MnDOT Aeronautics is now focused on coordinating with local utilities to understand current airport energy usage and electrical capacity at each airport. The team is also focused on workshop follow-ups with stakeholders to further assess the future near-term demand for electric aviation in Minnesota, as well as developing airport criteria for electric aviation readiness.
There will be a session at the 2025 Minnesota Airports Conference, April 23-25 at the Mankato Hilton Garden Inn in Mankato, providing further updates on the MEAN study and initial findings.
For additional information on the MEAN study, feel free to visit the study website. Also feel free to reach out to the MnDOT Aeronautics project manager, Joseph Block, at joseph.block@state.mn.us.