Southeast Missouri State approved for FAA drone training program

CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. (KBSI) – “It’s amazing. I never thought it would be this crazy but it is.” 

“It” being the drone industry, and Andrew Chronister, who is the Unmanned Aircraft Systems Program Coordinator at Southeast Missouri State, said the UAS Program aims to help fill a need in this field. 

“There are just so many different things that use drones, and it’s just becoming more and more popular,” he said. “There’s just a lot of demand for pilots right now, and the pilots need to be trained. That’s what we’re here for.” 

And through the Federal Aviation Administration’s UAS-Collegiate Training Initiative Program, for which Southeast Missouri State has been approved, students will receive highly specialized training in operating drones.

Chronister said this program will give students all the tools necessary to become the next generation of great drone pilots. 

“It is fun knowing that I’m helping educate and train people that are going to go out there and get jobs leading in the drone industry,” he said.

Speaking of those people, Caleb Ebert is minoring in UAS at Southeast. 

“I really love the feeling of flying, and now I’ve gotten to love the feeling of getting a really good shot from a drone because it’s unlike anything else really,” Ebert said.

Ebert plans on going into the film industry, and he said there are plenty of opportunities for anyone interested in a career in flying drones. 

“There definitely is a career there,” he said. “It’s growing. In the future, you’re going to see drones a lot more than you are now, and we’re already seeing tons of them.”