March 2, 2021
Watford to be site of state’s first unmanned drone operation
By Neal A. Shipman
Farmer Editor
The prospect of seeing unmanned drones flying across the skies of western North Dakota will become a reality this spring as North Dakota rolls out its VANTIS network. And some of those drones will be flying out of the Watford City Airport as the city was selected last October as one of two test sites in western North Dakota for unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) by the North Plains USA Test Site.
“We are in the process of installing equipment at your airport to help bring unmanned drones into reality,” stated Jim Cieplek, VANTIS program manager, during a pilot’s meeting at the Rough Rider Center on Wednesday, Feb. 24. “This will be the first in the nation.”