Commercial spaceports eyed for eastern N.C.
The Virginian-Pilot
A new aviation business park and long, isolated runways in eastern North Carolina could be keys to attracting commercial space-travel companies here, according to experts who attended a forum Thursday at Elizabeth City State University.
Earthly Benefits in a New Space Race
Op-Ed by Jeff Krukin
The News & Observer
A great deal of work has been done during the last few years in North Carolina to develop an aerospace workforce development plan and boost the state’s aerospace industry. However, the primary emphasis has been on aviation and traditional aerospace, with little attention paid to the emerging entrepreneurial space industry, or NewSpace.
Space consultant Jeff Krukin has penned an op-ed article for The (Charlotte) News-Observer about recent efforts by him and others to promote North Carolina to the commercial space industry.
Krukin believes that North Carolina, with its Research Triangle and strong universities, is a great for the “NewSpace” companies that are commercial transportation and space tourism.
“The work of the last four years has conclusively shown that North Carolina has a strong business and academic foundation to be a significant force in the space economy,” Krukin writes. “But it isn’t the only state with the necessary resources, and other states are already acting. If you think I’m referring to the traditional ‘space states’ such as California, Florida and Texas, think again. I mean Hawaii, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Virginia and Wisconsin. Is North Carolina doing enough to ensure its place?
