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K-State Today

April 25, 2017

Kansas State Polytechnic UAS student competes in first-ever collegiate drone racing competition

Submitted by Julee Cobb

Michael Wilson, a junior in the UAS flight and operations degree option at K-State's Polytechnic Campus competed in the nation's first-ever collegiate drone racing contest.

The list for unmanned aircraft applications continues to grow — the technology is now being utilized as a racing sport and a student from the Kansas State University Polytechnic Campus has participated in the first-ever collegiate competition.

Michael Wilson, a junior in the unmanned aircraft systems flight and operations degree option, Iola, was the only student from the state of Kansas to be selected for the inaugural Collegiate Drone Racing National Championship April 15 at Purdue University. Representing Kansas State Polytechnic, he joined nearly 50 other pilots from schools across the country battling it out on a complex obstacle course. The national competition was hosted by Purdue University's student drone club, who wanted to create an event that promotes UAS education, and featured more than $15,000 worth of equipment and prizes for the winner.

Wilson said each participant was required to build the unmanned aircraft that was being raced. In each of the heats, the pilots flew around the course using first person view — cameras mounted on the aircraft to see where they were going — and attempting to score as many laps as possible in two minutes. 

Though Wilson didn't bring home the national championship title, one of his professors, Christopher Senn, said Wilson is "hands-down one of the best UAS students and flight instructors at Kansas State Polytechnic."

"Michael holds an extensive amount of knowledge in unmanned aircraft systems and is one of my top students," Senn said. "Every chance he gets, he is outside flying his aircraft, and as a flight instructor, he has successfully taught a number of other students how to proficiently operate multirotor unmanned aircraft in a safe manner."

After graduation next year, Wilson plans to work either as a UAS test pilot for various industries or as a UAS pilot performing inspections.

To learn more about Kansas State Polytechnic's UAS academic degree options, contact Michael Most, option coordinator, at 785-826-2681 or mtmost@k-state.edu. For professional UAS training offerings, contact the campus's professional education and outreach office at 785-826-2633 or profed@k-state.edu. To inquire about UAS opportunities with the campus's Applied Aviation Research Center, contact Kurt Carraway, UAS executive director of the center, at 785-826-7170 or kcarraway@k-state.edu.

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