On Saturday, May 6 more than 100 community members filled the hangar as Vaughn hosted its second International Drone Day event with a variety of activities for area drone enthusiasts. Attendees brought drones to fly in Vaughn’s hangar, attended interactive workshops on the design, building, programming and certifying of drones and were able to see the Zero Gravity FPV racing team and the DJI-USA exhibition/sale of drones. 

The Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) Club coordinated the event in an effort to raise awareness and celebrate the flying devices.

“Changing the Skies,” guest panel featured experts in the aviation and drone industries, speaking on topics including aviation, law and transportation. The participants included: Management Department Chair Dr. Maxine Lubner, the Honorable John Goglia, independent aviation safety expert and former National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) member; Loretta Alkalay, aviation attorney and former legal advisor to the Federal Aviation Administration; Edward Kostakis, senior pilot DJI and co-founder Xizmo Steve Cohen, president Drone User Group; Adam Dershowitz, Exponent Inc. managing engineer; and Peter Sachs, attorney, Drone Law Journal. The discussion covered legal updates for drone users, STEM education, the history and future of flying drones, and commercial uses of drones in New York City.

International Drone Day was founded by David and Sarah Oneal of That Drone Show to educate people about the ways drones are used for good, such as in search and rescue, conservation, agriculture, sport, and film. May 6 is the third annual International Drone Day event, and 90,000 people are expected to attend events throughout Asia, Australia, Europe, North America, and South America. More information is available at www.internationaldroneday.com