(EL PASO INDEPENDENT SCHOOL DISTRICT – March 18, 2024) — Drone Technology students at the Center for Career and Technology Education (CCTE) in Central El Paso are preparing to compete against the best drone fliers in the state.
The Technology Student Association (TSA) Texas Drone Racing competition is a statewide competition that’s scheduled for this April in Fort Worth. The event features some of the most skilled drone fliers in the state. The competitors include Drone Technology students from David Alvarado’s class at CCTE. The program at the El Paso ISD campus launched five years ago and has become popular with students interested in aerospace and technology.
The Drone Technology class at CCTE not only teaches students how to build and fly the aircraft, but the class also helps students get their Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Part 107 license. That document is needed for people who want to fly their drones for commercial purposes.
“If you get the drone license, and you’re familiar with drones, then you can use the knowledge to supplement whatever career field you go into,” Alvarado said. “If you’re in engineering, you can use drones to do land surveys or to survey structures. If you’re in agriculture, you can use drones to fly over fields and take pictures of crops and see which ones are absorbing the most water.”
The drones that will be used in next month’s statewide competition were created by CCTE students. The teens learned to put the parts together and were also taught soldering techniques. The students said that they are excited to show off their work and knowledge at next month’s Drone Racing competition.
“We’re learning a lot in this class,” said junior student Sofia Encerrado. “We are even being taught about things that pilots learn since we share the same airspace.”
The CCTE students learn to fly the drones manually. Alvarado said this helps prepare the students to be able to control any type of drone in the future. The students begin their training by flying drones using a computer simulation.
“We start teaching them on these computers, so they can get the whole experience and learn to get a better handle of the device before training on the real thing,” Alvarado said.
In addition to learning how to fly and fix drones, students also learn about the innovations and technological developments made in aviation and aerospace industries. The course also includes engineering practices, aircraft structure, and a look toward future space exploration.
“This class shows us so much and it teaches us about career options that are available to us that weren’t even available years ago,” said junior student Josue Ronquillo. “This class is just filled with so many possibilities and it gives you so much freedom. I even learned how to repair drones. I barely had any experience in repair work before starting this class, but now I’m confident that I can fix these machines by myself.”
