ATRE Supports Local Drone Training
Students of the Digital Design and Engineering Academy at William J. “Pete”
Knight High School in Palmdale, California are steeped in aerospace history and tradition. Inspired by their school’s namesake as well as the flight test aircraft that regularly soar overhead, students have endeavored to compete in an international autonomous aircraft challenge, to make history of their own. And they have done just that.
Lockheed Martin Encourages Students
A couple of years ago, an industry partner and mentor from Lockheed Martin talked with the students about a competition that used unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) to identify a lost hiker in the outback of Australia, and deliver a survival package. The mentor’s suggestion that it would be amazing to learn about this technology and compete while still in high school sparked an immediate interest among the students.
With support from Northrop Grumman, PPG, Edwards Air Force Base, and an emerging partnership with the Advanced Transportation Technology and Energy Initiative (ATRE), a drone training program was developed and students learned to fly a range of UAVs in order to compete in the UAV Challenge held in Brisbane Australia. Despite a steep learning curve, they have placed third internationally for the last two years and are preparing to compete again this fall.
Instructor James Stockdale has supported these students every step of the way.
“To begin flying, students trained on a simulator program, then used DJI phantoms, and when they were more proficient they graduated to the DJI s800 Evo, and finally to the fully autonomous 3DR Iris. They are looking to add a 3DR Solo as well as exploring other platforms that support autonomous missions and would allow more student building and tuning of the aircrafts,” says Stockdale.
New Technology Makes Students Competitive
This year’s students are confident that their new aircraft, technology, and design upgrades will make them even more competitive than ever before. Students who previously competed at the high school level are now pursuing the university level of this competition. By furthering their study of unmanned aerial vehicles, they will be prepared to tangle with the more complex college level of competition for this challenge.
For more information, contact James Stockdale at jstockdale@avhsd.org or Larry McLaughlin at lmclaughlin@collegeofthedesert.edu.
