An American company associated with the US Aerospace and Defense industries is exploring the possibilities of establishing a subsidiary company here in Antigua and Barbuda.
Already, the company, M2C Aerospace, Inc. (M2C), which provides key support to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), has held meetings with Aviation, Investment and Transportation Minister, Charles Max Fernandez, on strategic planning discussion focused on establishing Antigua and Barbuda as an International destination for advanced aviation technology.
Representing M2C were Ann Dancik, CEO and President, and Captain Elpert Hodge, Executive Vice President, who is a native son of Antigua and where he started his aviation career.
Topics discussed included Antigua and Barbuda hosting an International Commercial Aviation Technology Symposium in the spring of 2027 to be attended by global and regional airlines, aircraft manufacturers, and aircraft suppliers, and the technology transfer of the Virtual Pilot Assistant (VPA) currently being developed by M2C USA to M2C Antigua.
The VPA is an Artificial Intelligence (AI) Automatic Voice Recognition (AVR) piloting information retrieval system that could significantly improve aviation safety and efficiency, particularly for less experienced pilots.
Key local contributors to these planned developments are Makeda Mikael, Antigua Hangars Inc. whose facility could be used to support the Symposium and the planned technology flight demonstrations, and Dr. Curtis Charles, Director Academic Affairs, UWI FIC. The UWI FIC would be key in providing a pipeline of AI professionals to support VPA enhancements and establishment of a Data Center to support aircraft fleets of both global and regional airlines.
