High School students from across Qatar spent their spring break learning about drone technologies as part of the Engineering Heroes Drone Camp hosted by Texas A&M University at Qatar (Tamuq). 
Engineering Heroes is an academic outreach initiative that teaches the principles of aviation, programming and power electronics as students are immersed in drone technology and its diverse 
applications. 
Throughout the week-long programme, experts from Tamuq led about 30 participants through exercises and programming challenges in preparation for a drone obstacle course competition in which participants applied their learning to simulated real-world problems that drones can solve. 
An added challenge for the students was learning to programme and navigate in three dimensions — not just forward and backward, and right and left, but also up and down — using cameras mounted on the drones.
The teams were coached by officers from the Reconnaissance and Surveillance Centre of the Qatar Armed Forces, who also gave the students a preview of drone technologies being adopted by Qatar’s armed forces. At the end of the week, the student teams were required to fly their drones through an obstacle course and to land their drones safely after particular reconnaissance tasks were completed.
Winning teams were chosen according to their performance in the obstacle course and their application of programming skills developed over the course of the week.
Participant Noora al-Marri said Engineering Heroes was “a fantastic experience and worthwhile way” to spend her spring break. “It has been an interesting and educational opportunity, through which I have learned a lot,” she said. “Thanks to Texas A&M University and the team behind organising this programme, having more of these programmes encourages the younger generations to pursue studying STEM fields to participate in achieving Qatar National Vision 2030.”
Dr César O Malavé, dean, Tamuq, said: “One of the greatest challenges Qatar faces is developing the technical workforce that it needs to sustain its phenomenal growth and drive the state toward the goals of Qatar National Vision 2030. It is imperative that we reach young students in Qatar through exciting and fun learning opportunities such as Engineering Heroes so that they choose careers in science and 
engineering.”