"Reach for the Sky" in Samara

From September 26 to 28, the University is hosting the federal festival of unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) "Reach for the Sky". It aims to popularize one of the fastest growing technology industries in Russia and in the world and unite amateurs and professionals.

In Samara, lectures, round tables and workshops dedicated to UAS technologies are held for participants aged 14 and above. Also, a thematic exhibition at the University invites you to get acquainted with the advanced achievements of the Samara region in the industry.

At the opening of the festival, Dmitry Afanasyev, Deputy Minister of Science and Higher Education of the Russian Federation, welcomed the participants by videoconference. He emphasized that the festival is distributed and is held in 18 regions of the country, united by a common desire: to introduce wide circles – the public, government, business, schoolchildren, students, scientists, inventors – to projects of technological leadership of Russia. "At the festival site, you can get acquainted with large-scale challenges and learn about new goals for the development of UAS. You can offer your projects, take part in UAS competitions. Schoolchildren can find themselves in a new large-scale industry and, perhaps, decide on a future profession", the deputy minister emphasized.

Vladimir Bogatyrev, Rector of Samara University, also addressed the festival participants. He noted that the festival format is designed for both schoolchildren, students and their parents, as well as for specialists engaged in UAS technologies.

"Our main task is to talk about the prospects for the development of unmanned aircraft systems, about what educational programs in this area the university is implementing, what professions can be obtained now, and which ones will appear in the future, to captivate and interest schoolchildren in this relevant topic", he noted.

Representative of the ANO "University of the National Technological Initiative 2035" Alexey Stepanov noted that the main goal of the festival is to popularize educational programs, developments, production and operation of UAS.

Sergey Uryupin, a representative of the regional Ministry of Economic Development and Investment, emphasized that the Samara Region has all the competencies: production, research, and personnel ones, allowing it to become a flagship in the field of UAS development: "On the one hand, this gives us carte blanche to develop the industry, on the other hand, we must fulfill all the obligations undertaken. It is important that the Samara Region becomes the capital of unmanned aviation."

Samara National Research University is known for its scientific developments in the field of UAS far beyond the region. At the University's Center for Unmanned Systems, employees design and assemble their own UAVs using both airplane and helicopter schemes. The university also has its own testing base – an airfield, where these UAVs are tested.

"We design and create aircraft with different characteristics – both in weight, up to 30 kg, and in the number of propellers; we create helicopter and airplane types. Thus, the University provides every opportunity to learn not only how to operate drones, but also how to create them", the rector noted.

In summer 2024, the University was among the winners of educational organizations (providers) in Russia that will have to train personnel in the field of unmanned aircraft systems. The training has already started under short-term educational programs to train UAV designers and pilots, both at the University and beyond it. The training program is implemented as part of the federal project "Personnel for Unmanned Aircraft Systems" of the national project "Unmanned Aircraft Systems". "Short-term educational programs allow us to train UAV designers and pilots. The University implements these programs in 15 regions, and we have selected 550 people who are studying under them", concluded Vladimir Bogatyrev.

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The "Reach for the Sky" festival includes three directions at Samara University site: "Dream", "Technology" and "Society".

The "Dream" direction is a quest game for schoolchildren, the participants of which will learn about the future of unmanned technologies – from flights under the roof to far space. In the quest, schoolchildren will learn how to control drones in a simulator and in real life. In addition, participants will get acquainted with the features of spacecraft technologies, decipher images from space and select orbits for satellites in the simulator.

The "Technology" direction is for elder festival participants: industry experts will tell them about the principles of drone design, selection of components and creation of schemes for different operating conditions. Participants in this direction will practice piloting skills in a flight simulator, as well as develop a drone that meets certain functional requirements and deliver cargo on it.

The "Society" direction will become a platform for discussing the tools of the federal project "Personnel for UAS", which develop the education system in the field of design, production and operation of UAS. Within the framework of this direction, participants will be able to pass testing in the Techno GTO format, designed to assess the general level of technological literacy of participants.

The festival "Reach for the Sky" is held by ANO "UNT University 2035" within the framework of the federal project "Personnel for Unmanned Aircraft Systems" of the national project "Unmanned Aircraft Systems" with the support of the Government of the Samara Region.