A drone flying camp that caters for children between the ages of ten and 15 years old is set to begin on July 20 and run until August 18 at Dragonfly Geospatial, 700 East Ruimveldt, Georgetown.
Chief Pilot and Owner of Dragonfly Geospatial Brian Smith noted that the response to last year’s training was immense and had targeted various age groups and different levels of skills with drones. However, this year, he said, he and his assistants were taking on children aged ten to 15 years old to teach them not only to fly the drones but the dynamics, creation and safety that come with flying drones.
He believes this will allow them the opportunity to build cognitive skills, learn problem solving and also improve their interaction and communication skills. It could also help them if they choose a career in environmental science, for example, in the future. The intention, he said, is to increase the number of young drone pilots, inspire innovation and build on the STEM curriculum since they will be exposed to engineering and mathematical concepts as well.
Brian noted that when manoeuvring drones maintenance, competency and programming are important as well as knowledge on how to operate in safety. He stressed that even though licences are not required to operate drones, he teaches safety practices so the laws of the Civil Aviation Authority can be maintained. He said that next year he would like to focus specifically on the programming aspect.
Dragonfly Geospatial was established in 2020 to help drone lovers fly drones and to assist them with observation, photography, videography, surveying, programming drones, training on their use, and instructions on how to build them. Dragonfly acts as an agency too, as it keeps a database of all the top pilots who operate drones, so that when an entity is seeking a drone pilot it can recommend someone.
With regard to this year’s camp, he is encouraging parents to register their children now. Registration ends on July 18 and the camp will only cater for around 20 children in order to give each child adequate attention. Registration costs $5,000 and is ongoing. The fee covers instruction manuals and pencils. Further, Brian said, if Dragonfly manages to secure sponsorship, children would be able to take a drone home. Registration can be done on Instagram: https://instagram.com/dragonflygeospatial?r=nametag, on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/dragonflygeospatial or at
https://forms.gle/x8vmwweHybZRA2HZA. Classes will be held on Wednesdays and Fridays from 10 am to 12 pm.
Brian said he also plans to hold adult classes in September and will post an advertisement online.