Students from across the United States and around the world will converge on Tulsa this month as RoboNation brings its annual Student Unmanned Aerial Systems (SUAS) Competition to Oklahoma for the first time.
Sixty-four teams representing 10 countries qualified to compete in flight at Skyway Range in Tulsa, Oklahoma, September 14–17. RoboNation is working closely with Skyway Range and Tulsa Innovation Labs (TIL) as the organization prepares to welcome students, educators, industry partners, and volunteers to the region.
“Hosting one of the nation’s largest drone competitions in Tulsa is another proof point that our region is the center of gravity for the future of flight,”
shared Tori Burris, Innovation Manager at Tulsa Innovation Labs.
“These students are our future industry leaders, so we’re proud to show them that Tulsa is a place where they can build a career with this technology, from research and design to manufacturing and testing.”
“Students can spend years learning how these systems work in a classroom o laboratory, but there is enormous value in placing them in an environment where autonomous technology is actively being tested, developed, and deployed,”
said Daryl Davidson, President and CEO of RoboNation.
“SUAS gives students that bridge. They are solving difficult engineering problems, operating under real constraints, and meeting the companies and professionals who are tackling many of those same challenges every day.”
Workforce development remains a central focus of the SUAS Competition. Participating students work across disciplines including aerospace and mechanical engineering, computer science, artificial intelligence, machine learning, computer vision, communications, systems integration, and flight operations. Teams must bring those specialties together into a single aircraft capable of performing reliably and autonomously in the field.
That combination of technical expertise, collaboration, and real-world problem solving is increasingly important as demand grows for talent capable of designing, testing, manufacturing, and operating autonomous systems.
Throughout the event, RoboNation will work with its local and national partners to create opportunities for students to connect with the wider UAS community and gain greater exposure to career pathways within the industry.
The move to Tulsa builds on RoboNation’s broader commitment to locating its competitions in environments where students can see a direct connection between the systems they build and the industries they may one day help lead.
TIL was a leading driver to the move alongside the Osage Nation and Skyway Range. The tech-led economic development organization fuels economic opportunity in the northeast Oklahoma region through innovation by connecting resources, ideas, and people. Skyway Range is a 1,200-square-mile beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) unmanned urban/rural flight test range just outside of downtown Tulsa on the Osage Nation Reservation.
Tulsa Innovation Labs has been a key driver in the development of Tulsa’s drone ecosystem and infrastructure, gaining recognition as a national Tech Hub. As the drone industry takes flight, Burris shares,
“Our goal isn’t to just attract new technology. We’re building on Tulsa’s strengths and creating pathways into high-quality jobs for the region.”
Jason George, General Manager of Skyway Range, said they are excited to welcome the teams to Tulsa, introduce them to the growing UAS ecosystem here and give them an opportunity to test their technology in an environment built for real world innovation.
“Bringing the SUAS Competition to Skyway Range connects the students developing the next generation of autonomous systems with the environment the Osage Nation has developed to bring that future to life,” he said.
The SUAS Competition is open to the public. The Tulsa community, industry, and media encouraged to attend and see the next generation of engineers in action, and enjoy food trucks and more onsite. Competition activities at Skyway Range run September 15–17, concluding with an awards ceremony.
Source: RoboNation;