May 2025 Update

Stakeholder Engagement Summary

Stakeholder education and feedback are critical to the success of the MEAN Study. To support this, MnDOT Aeronautics hosted six in-person meetings across the state of Minnesota in January and February 2025. These sessions facilitated meaningful dialogue and gathered valuable input from a broad range of stakeholders, including airport sponsors and staff, aviation users, and businesses operating at Minnesota airports.

Meeting Participation Highlights:

  • 70+ attendees representing:
    • 26 Airports
    • 11 Aviation Businesses
    • 6 Consulting Firms
    • 4 Utility Providers
    • 3 Neighboring State Departments of Transportation
    • The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)

In addition to these meetings, the project team has engaged stakeholders through multiple outreach channels, including:

  • The MEAN Survey
  • One-on-one discussions with original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) of electric aircraft, charging systems, and propulsion technologies
  • Coordination with airport utility providers
  • Interviews with airports and aviation businesses across Minnesota
  • Strategic conversations with neighboring state DOTs, educational institutions, consulting firms, and the FAA

Outreach to airports and utility providers remains ongoing, with the goal of gathering data from as many Minnesota airports as possible.

This comprehensive engagement has informed two key analyses of Minnesota’s readiness for electric aviation: supply and demand.

  • Supply Analysis evaluates airport infrastructure and airport electric power supply.
  • Demand Analysis considers electric aircraft use cases, airport activity levels, regional demographics, and stakeholder feedback.

Each analysis uses a set of weighted evaluation criteria, which together generate a total readiness score for each airport. The highest-scoring airports will form the foundation of the MEAN.

Project Status (as of May 2025):

  • Demand analysis: Complete
  • Supply analysis: Nearing completion

Next Steps:

  • Final outreach to airports and utility providers
  • Completion of the supply analysis
  • Finalization of the MEAN airport list
  • Development of final study deliverables (expected by end of June 2025)

For questions or additional information, please contact:

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