BLACKSBURG, Va. – It’s the tallest drone park in the United States, standing 85 feet above ground.
The football field-sized park at Virginia Tech is officially open for student research, education and recreation.
“Being able to fly in the drone cage is really helpful. It's really accessible for us to do many different things for our research,” Kevin Yu, a student at Virginia Tech, said.
Because the cage is outdoors, it provides a research environment with real-world weather conditions.
“I like building drones. I like programming them. I really like watching them fly. The cage makes experiments quicker and easier to perform,” Spencer Buebel, a student at Virginia Tech, said.
The enclosed net also means the facility is not subject to the Federal Aviation Administration regulations that govern public air space, giving students and faculty the freedom to pursue more innovative projects.
“My hope is to one day have a society where we will assist humans in everyday life, like a package delivery for Amazon,” Yu said.
For these students, only a net keeps the sky from being the limit.