Latrobe City Council has appointed Yarra Drones to design and establish an Advanced Air Mobility Command Centre at Latrobe Regional Airport.
Backed by funding from the Victorian State Government, the new facility will form part of the Latrobe Aerospace Technology Precinct. The primary function of the Command Centre will be to provide operators with dedicated facilities to research, test, and evaluate their drone technologies. Latrobe City is uniquely positioned for this infrastructure, situated 1.5 hours from Melbourne with ready access to established supply chains and low population density areas inside the proposed testing corridor.
The development represents a major milestone for the region, enabling the safe, scalable, and integrated testing of low-to-no emissions advanced air mobility technologies. This program aligns with the council’s ongoing strategy to attract investment in emerging industries, diversifying the local economy to stimulate employment and economic growth. Nationally, Australia’s emerging drone sector is projected to generate an annual economic boost of $14.5 billion while creating more than 5,500 jobs each year.
To secure a significant share of this national market, the council established the Latrobe Aerospace Technology Precinct as a national Centre of Excellence, making it the first fully integrated site in Australia dedicated to advanced air mobility research, development, testing, and evaluation.
Latrobe City Mayor, Councillor Sharon Gibson, welcomed the development, saying, “Further investment in aerospace is an exciting development for our region. It represents a major step toward creating new opportunities which means more local jobs.”
“It’s exciting that Latrobe is set to play a role in the nation’s aviation future, which will be good news for improving emergency services, industry and public transport,” said Mayor Gibson.
Ravi Murty, Founder and Chief Remote Pilot of Yarra Drones, added, “We are honoured to partner with Latrobe City Council to deliver this nationally significant AAM Command Centre. The facility will provide a controlled, regulatory-aligned environment where national and international companies can develop, test, and trial uncrewed aircraft systems safely and efficiently.”
“Our focus is to deliver a scalable, future-ready platform that supports testing, evaluation, certification, and the commercialisation of Uncrewed Aviation Systems and Advanced Air Mobility operations. By enabling research and development, and system trials in Latrobe City, the Command Centre positions the region as a hub for innovation, capability building, and advanced aviation development, and we are privileged to be part of this initiative,” continued Mr Murty.
