District III
Ohio, Pennsylvania, West Virginia
On February 26, 2022, I attended the West Virginia Robotics Education & Competition (REC) Foundation Robotic Aerial Drone (RAD) Competition signature event at Fairmont State University in Fairmont, West Virginia. This was an indoor drone competition for middle and high school students.
There were more than 80 students flying their multirotor aircraft through an obstacle course, with the goal of using wind from their rotors to
move ping-pong balls into designated areas to earn points. Each school had three-person teams that worked together in order to move the balls and score points for their schools’ team.
The drones had no autonomous features and had to be flown within visual line of sight using eye and hand coordination. The competition was extremely well organized and professionally presented, thanks to event organizer Todd Ensign, Ed.D Faculty, Fairmont State University.
Several aerospace companies were on hand to show students the aviation career opportunities that are available in the world today. The list of exhibitors was impressive, including NASA’s IV&V program, NASA Langley Research Center, Engine & Airframe Solutions Worldwide (E.A.S.W.), Aurora Flight Sciences, Fairmont State Aviation Program, and Pratt & Whitney.
I felt that it was important to attend with a display about AMA and model aviation.
I set up a flight simulator, which had a steady line of students flying RC models. Fellow AMA member Ed Waske, owner of E.A.S.W., assisted with Control Line and glider models, explaining how model airplanes led him to an aviation career.
This event was an eye-opener for me. Ed and I had several schoolteachers and administrators asking what AMA is and if we could make presentations at their schools about how model aviation can be utilized for a student’s future aviation career. We need to attend events such as this to promote our clubs and model aviation.
If you want to learn more, go to www.roboticseducation.org.
Until next month, stay safe and fly safely.
