Aleut Community of St. Paul Island Tribal Government

Location

St. Paul Island, AK

Project Name

Aeronautics Workforce Development (AWD) Program

Award Amount

Federal Share:
$298,205

Local Match:
$353,809

In 2018, Aleut Community of St. Paul Island (ACSPI) signed a landmark agreement with Sabrewing, Inc. which created a business partnership between the company and the tribal government. This partnership is focused on the development of a new, world-leading class of automated commercial (CLASS V) aircraft, the Rhaegal. The partnership, which includes testing and operation of the aircraft in St. Paul Island, has created an immediate need for STEM field employees in a high-paying, high-demand emerging STEM industry through the establishment of the St. Paul Experimental Test Range (SPxTR) and through the FAA certification process for this aircraft.

This project will train and provide mentoring from industry professionals for students to ensure that members of the community, who are 89 percent Alaska Native and in a severely economically disadvantaged region, can immediately seek and fill the jobs created. As the project progresses, the capacity for manufacturing in the State created from the ACSPI and Sabrewing partnership will create hundreds of additional jobs in the emerging semi-autonomous aeronautic industry.

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