UA Global Campus to offer drone operation class in January

The University of Arkansas Global Campus is offering a four-session course to teach best practices and practical, hands-on skills for flying unmanned aircraft, or drones, safely and legally. The class will prepare students to take the Federal Aviation Administration remote pilot certification exam.

Drone Pilot Training, or Unmanned Aircraft Systems 1, starts Jan. 20 and will meet every other Saturday through March 3. Classes run from 9 a.m. to noon, with the Jan. 20 and Feb. 17 classes meeting at the UA’s Global Campus at 3300 Market St. in Rogers. The Feb. 3 class will be an online webinar, and the March 3 class will be at the Arkansas Agricultural Research and Extension Center on Garland Avenue in Fayetteville or a similar location for field testing.

Richard Ham, the senior associate director of the Master of Science in Operations Management program in the College of Engineering, will teach the class. “This course is the first step to becoming a professional, certified remote pilot,” Ham said. “It was developed for people interested in using this technology for work or commercial ventures, but it will also be valuable to hobbyists who want to fly safely and legally.”

Class participants will learn how to use drones to perform video and mapping tasks. They will also learn about data processing software, flight weather data, flight planning and map reading.

Ham organized the first Unmanned Aircraft Systems Summit in Arkansas and is leading efforts to start an Arkansas chapter of the Association of Unmanned Vehicle Systems International.

The class is $699 and doesn’t include the fee to take the FAA remote pilot exam. Also, a drone is required. Click here to register.