Local students ranging in age from 8 to 14 enjoyed participating in Drone Team Challenge Flight Week July 23-26, 2018   Students learned the rules of drone flight and how to use flight controllers with simulators to master drone flight control before flying the actual drones in indoor obstacle courses.    The students also learned how to autonomously program drones to fly a predetermined flight path as well as learning the importance of drone technology applications in future business and military endeavors.

Along with drone flight, students also engaged in STEM activities such as 3D printing, circuits, coding, rockets, and even chess. Surprisingly, chess became one of the most popular activities at the camp as students developed the “if-then” logic necessary for computer programming. At the end of the camp, students all received 3D printed drone wings to commemorate their achievements at the camp in both drone flight and other STEM activities.

After just four days of camp, the HSU Educational Foundation and the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) are confident in the skills and knowledge these brilliant students have achieved and hope to gain a few more drone and STEM-related experts in the future.