Unmanned Aircraft Systems

This option of study prepares students for careers in the field of unmanned aircraft systems, or UAS. This is a rapidly growing area of aviation and students will be prepared to safely deploy unmanned vehicles in response to emerging challenges and opportunities. Foundational coursework includes topics from the areas of manned aviation, avionics, aircraft maintenance and engineering technology. These courses have been specifically selected to provide students with the ability to fly and maintain a diverse array of unmanned aircraft as well as to integrate these with the gamut of payloads and autopilots, ranging from those which are proprietary to those systems that are commercially available as off-the-shelf, open-source hardware. Subsequent courses build on this foundation to encourage critical thinking and promote those skills necessary to succeed in an emerging and rapidly evolving technical field. Students will be prepared for technical and/or entry-level managerial positions and will be required to successfully defend a portfolio of accumulated learning prior to graduation.

Related Career Titles

UAS Contract pilots for overseas deployment
UAS pilot for domestic operations
UAS operations managers*
UAS operations technicians
UAS research pilots

*additional training required for these occupations

Related unmanned aircraft systems links

K-State Department of Unmanned Aircraft Systems
http://polytechnic.k-state.edu/aviation/uas/index.html

Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International
http://www.auvsi.org/home/