The earliest unmanned aerial vehicle, or UAV, in the history of drones was first seen in 1839 when Austrian soldiers attacked the city of Venice, Italy with unmanned balloons filled with explosives. While some of the Austrian balloons were successful, a number of them blew back and bombed the Austrians’ own lines. Though the balloons did not work out well for the Austrians, it did not stop countries around the world from developing and testing many different forms of UAVs for military uses. UAV or drone simply means that the pilot does not sit or stand in the vehicle.
Almost 180 years after the Austrians’ attack of Venice, drones have become a familiar part of our culture. There are many uses for this technology from emergency services to spraying pesticides on crops. It is projected that over the next several years there will be 100,000 new jobs attributed to drone use in the United States alone.
The Private Industry Council of Westmoreland/Fayette, Inc. has been awarded $10,000 from the First Energy Foundation Christmas in July Education Program that will be used to teach this exciting career path to 13 students from Belle Vernon, Franklin Regional and Greater Latrobe School Districts.
The students will participate in a 40 hour curriculum which includes course that cover the rules and regulations of drone flying, Hobbyist versus Commercial flying, video editing and much more. The students will be required to complete a project using the drones consisting of making a 4-5 minute commercial that promotes some aspect of their school. The course will finish up with the students taking their FAA 107 Drone certification test. Passing this test will allow them to fly commercially if they choose to continue in this field.
During the course, the students will be using a DJ1 Mavic Pro Drone. This drone provides spectacular 4K photos and videos, has a top speed of 50 MPH and flies up to 400 feet. Upon completion of the course, each student will receive a DJ1 Tello Drone that is a smaller more compact version of the Mavic but every bit as impressive. With the knowledge and experience they gain from this exciting course, along with the DJ1 Tello Drone, the sky is just the beginning for their exciting careers in the world of drones.
