WACO, Texas (KXXV) — Students at Waco ISD's GWAMA Drone Academy are learning the ins-and-outs of a new technology, getting ahead of the career curve in what is projected to be a booming career field.
- There are 31 students enrolled in this inagural Drone Academy at Waco ISD's Greater Waco Advanced Manufacturing Academy
- The Association of Unmanned Vehicle Systems predicts more than 100,000 drone-related positions will be created in the U.S. through the year 2025
- This is projected to be an $82 billion dollar industry
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
Waco ISD’s Greater Waco Advanced Manufacturing Academy is teaching its inaugural drone class to local students.
"It’s very exciting being able to learn something that’s very new to the world," said Malakai Marciel, senior in the GWAMA Drone Academy.
"Drones have been out a little more than a decade, but it’s interesting to see how they’ve improved and gotten better and how much you can do with them."
Marciel has been interested in drones for years, and with a background in robotics, he has no doubt his future is secure.
"I plan on going to TSTC to do Aviation of Air Space and Science, and then I plan on working at a small business or starting my own," he said.
It's a growing job field — the Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems predicts more than 100,000 drone-related jobs will be created in the U.S. through 2025 — creating an more than 82-billion dollar industry.
"I’m going to try to have 11 students certified with their part 107, they can take that when they get out of high school and get a job flying drones or use it into college and help them in their college career," said Randall Weidner, Instructor for the GWAMA Drone Academy.
Weidner knows where this technology is going, and is looking forward to where this program can go.
"It’s really cool getting to introduce the drones because there’s so much automation coming to them now — there’s a lot of opportunity as a drone pilot," he said.
