DAYTON — The Dayton region has the resources and expertise to form what could serve as a national education and training organization for unmanned aerial vehicles, representatives of higher education, business and government said Thursday, Jan. 7, during an initial meeting to discuss the concept.

Sinclair Community College would host the as-yet unnamed organization, but it would include the University of Dayton, Wright State University, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base and Dayton-area companies as partners, said Deb Norris, Sinclair’s vice president of workforce development and corporate services, an organizer of Thursday’s meeting at the college. Representatives of U.S. Rep. Mike Turner, R-Centerville; Ohio Department of Development; Air Force Research Laboratory; Woolpert Inc., of Dayton, and Co-Operative Engineering Services Inc., a Beavercreek company that designs and operates UAVs, were among those at the meeting.

The organization, tentatively referred to during the meeting as the “National Center for UAV Education and Certification,” could serve as a national clearinghouse, said Larrell Walters, director of the University of Dayton-led Institute for Development and Commercialization of Advanced Sensors Technology (IDCAST). It could offer online, fee-based, long-distance education courses for unmanned aerial vehicle operation as well as information about design, operation, payloads and other aspects of UAVs, said Walters, another organizer of the meeting.

Those who attended said that Dayton is poised to support such an organization, with its aerospace expertise.

The attendees hope to refine Thursday’s discussion into a two-page concept document within three weeks as a basis for going forward to seek funding from federal, state or other sources, Norris and Walters said. The volunteers will spend the next six months determining priorities to form the organization, which could combine nonprofit and for-profit operations, they said.

“We do feel a sense of urgency here, because other people want to do this, as well,” Walters said, referring to universities in other states that have UAV programs to respond to what has become a multibillion-dollar industry. “Somebody’s going to do this. We think it can be done here.”

Woolpert, which flies manned planes as part of providing mapping services for clients, is supporting the proposal and is very interested in unmanned aircraft that it could fly on mapping exercises, said Shane Imwalle, a senior vice president who attended the meeting.

Chief among the Dayton region’s resources is Wright-Patterson. The base manages Air Force unmanned aircraft programs and is home to research and development for sensors used aboard the military aircraft, which also have civilian uses.

IDCAST includes the Center for UAV Exploitation, a new Dayton-based entity organized to develop and test the sensors and controls used in unmanned aerial vehicles. The State Controlling Board in September 2009 approved a $2.5 million grant to equip that center.

In September, Gov. Ted Strickland designated Dayton as Ohio’s hub for aerospace innovation and opportunity, which could lead to state development funding for the region.