Success story: 'The partnership we have with NMC is highly impactful.'

Cherryland Electric CEO Rachel Johnson

May 14, 2025

Anyone who’s weathered a northern Michigan storm knows when the power goes out, the countdown to restoration starts.

In the aftermath of March’s devastating Gaylord-area ice storm, some 80,000 residential customers were facing a long countdown — nearly three weeks. Using drones and special permission to fly them beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS), NMC worked with local electrical co-ops to make the response more efficient. In one 20-minute stint, for instance, a drone flying BVLOS inspected 75 poles, a task which would have taken a day using traditional methods.

With the benefit of BVLOS clearly illuminated, NMC this week officially joined the NorthSky Consortium to work towards establishing a BVLOS drone corridor from Camp Grayling to Grand Traverse County.

The BVLOS corridor is a key focus of the NorthSky Consortium, which also includes regional economic development agency Traverse Connect and startup incubator 20Fathoms. All three organizations signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) Monday, May 12. Both Camp Grayling and U.S. Coast Guard Air Station Traverse City will support the consortium as well.

NMC, which enters the consortium with 15 years of expertise offering drone, or UAS training, currently has an FAA waiver to fly BVLOS for utility pole inspection. That waiver proved vital to the region following the late March storm. Cherryland Electric CEO Rachel Johnson (right) said the storm impacted 8,000 miles of electrical infrastructure owned by Great Lakes Energy and Presque Isle Electric and Gas, much of it in “deep right of way” inaccessible to vehicles. 

“Accessibility was an incredible challenge. We couldn’t get to things to inspect what was going on,” Johnson said. “When you are having to constantly move to assess, during a storm, it’s highly inefficient.”

Enter NMC with its BVLOS waiver. College UAS coordinator Tony Sauerbrey (left) and Cherryland communications control field engineer Zach Endres, an NMC alumnus, were able to inspect 600 deep right-of-way utility poles in the Onaway-Lewiston area in two days.

“It was a great opportunity for Cherryland to assist alongside NMC and bring them aboard to help the communities that were in need,” said Endres. (Cherryland customers were not affected but the co-op supported the response of the others.)

“Being able to know where the damage was and being able to deploy to that location was incredibly impactful,” Johnson agreed. All power was restored by April 18.

Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer declared a state of emergency for much of northern Michigan due to the storm.

 “It’s by far the worst thing I’ve ever seen while working at Cherryland,” Endres said. “Talking with a lot of lineman who have gone on hurricanes, this was by far the worst they’ve ever dealt with in their careers.”

A dedicated BVLOS corridor would allow for testing and deploying advanced drone technology by multiple users, including the Michigan National Guard and Michigan Department of Transportation.

“We are very, very grateful for the work NMC has done to get that exemption,” Johnson said. “When it’s critical infrastructure, basic health and human safety, it’s a really good use of that exemption.”

In addition to the BVLOS corridor, which NMC is co-leading with Camp Grayling, goals of the NorthSky Consortium include:

• Workforce development and academic innovation, including curriculum aligned with FAA certifications, in order to build a skilled talent pipeline (NMC lead)
• Promote northern Michigan as a premier destination for UAS and advanced aerial mobility (AAM), attracting businesses and startup growth (Traverse Connect lead)
• Establishing a UAS Center of Excellence. This dedicated facility will be developed to serve as a hub for AAM innovation, research and workforce training. (NMC and Traverse Connect co-lead.)

Later this month, Camp Grayling will host an Uncrewed Triple Challenge, in which teams compete to move a package across water, air, and land using unmanned system(s) in varying conditions and obstacles with no human interaction.