Update: Small Unmanned Aircraft Systems (sUAS) - Current Uses and Potential

Dr. David Thirtyacre is an Assistant Professor in the College of Aeronautics at the Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University’s Worldwide Campus. David is the Chair and Chief Pilot for the Department of Flight and currently instructs at the undergraduate and graduate levels in Flight Operations, Aerodynamics, Aircraft Performance, Unmanned Systems, Airborne Robotics, and Aviation and Aerospace Simulation Systems. David holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Mechanical Engineering, a Master’s Degree in Aerospace Science, and a Ph.D. in Aviation. His research expertise is focused on the use of UAS in air-to-air combat, virtual reality flight simulation, and environmental applications of sUAS. He retired from the USAF with 27 years of duty in the fighter community with over 3500 hours piloting fighter aircraft and was a pioneer in the use of unmanned systems. The majority of his military career was spent at Nellis Air Force Base in Las Vegas, Nevada where he specialized in operational test and was the USAF Warfare Center’s director of advanced programs. He was the focal point for advanced program operational testing and planning; combining the air, space and cyberspace domains with 5th generation aircraft, unmanned systems, national capabilities and other DoD assets. He is the owner of SkyVue 3D, a commercial drone mapping enterprise, a multi-engine commercial pilot, remote pilot, AUVSI TOP Level-3 instructor, and a certified flight instructor, instrument (CFII).