Yuma, Arizona (AZ Family) — Arizona could soon become a top destination for rocket launches.
Yuma has been working to bring a spaceport to the city.
Yuma Spaceport will be located east of San Luis, Arizona, on a parcel of city-owned land.
Jay Simonton, City of Yuma Interim City Administratorsaid the spaceport vision began in 2017 when the city began seeing interest from commercial rocket companies looking for a launch site.
“These small businesses need to test their equipment. The market is dominated by the big players, and they don’t have the time or space to launch in Cape Canaveral (Florida) or California.” said Simonton.
He said the spaceport would target small and medium-sized companies that launch satellites.
“We’re talking about very small rockets to launch small commercial satellites for research,” he said.
“Yuma is an ideal location. We’re very close to the Sea of Cortez, and beyond that we have the Pacific Ocean. It’s the perfect place to launch into polar orbits around the sun. If this happens, all launches will be in Cortez It will be launched at sea and in the Pacific Ocean,” Simonton said.
The aerospace industry is one of the fastest growing industries in the world and will be a major economic boom for the region.
“When you bring in high-tech businesses, you bring in high-tech jobs and higher-paying jobs,” Simonton said.
The city estimates it could bring more than 2,000 jobs to the area and spur $2 billion in industrial growth.
This is a time-consuming and expensive process. First, the city needs to: Obtain an operating license from Federal Aviation AdministrationWe are working on this.
The city also needs to find an investor to help build the spaceport.
They are also considering grants to make that possible.
of The city has just been named a finalist for National Science Foundation Granta major milestone for the project.
NSF programs fund scientific innovation in underserved areas like Yuma.
Yuma is one of 71 finalists nationwide and one of only two in Arizona.
“If we are successful in receiving the grant, we will spend $160 million over 10 years to advance this spaceport,” Simonton said.
Simonton said there is support for the project at the state level as well.
“We’ve been talking to Sen. (Mark) Kelly, he’s a former astronaut. He’s very interested in this project and very supportive. “I’m hoping to come to Arizona,” he said.
The City of Yuma is still in the process of applying for an FFA license.
Simonton estimates that approval could take up to a year or more, but once it does, he expects there will be more interest from aerospace companies and potential investors. .
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