Kansas Senator Jerry Moran has announced a federal grant to build a new $28 million facility to serve as an education hub for Kansas State University-Salina’s Aerospace and Technology campus.
Moran was in Salina on Tuesday to announce the grant and a separate $5.5 million grant to provide aviation training equipment to enhance the school’s pilot training partnership with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. This program gives students the science, technology, engineering and math skills required to join the NOAA Commissioned Officer Corps, one of the eight federal uniformed services.
Moran said the funding will grow K-State’s research and development footprint to better serve Kansans and attract new students and faculty to Salina. He said, “It has long been my goal to make certain Kansas is a place where students can find a quality education and a fulfilling career without having to leave the state. K-State Salina is a hub for learning, research and innovation, and these federal resources are an investment in expanding the great work being done at the university.”
The new facility will provide space for K-State Salina’s programs in uncrewed aircraft systems, composites and aviation maintenance. The new facility is the second phase to revitalize the southernmost end of the K-State Salina campus as the General Atomics Aerospace Innovation Ramp. General Atomics provided a $10 million gift in 2022 to kick off the revitalization program. The anchor of the Aerospace Innovation Ramp is the Aerospace Education Hub, which will house the Kansas AAM Flight Test and Training Center, the Advanced Composites Laboratory and the Aviation Maintenance Training Center.
