Congratulations to the West Valley JROTC program on its invitation to the 8th Brigade Army JROTC Aerial Drone Competition in Reno, Nevada!  West Valley tested its mettle among 60 other teams.  West Valley was invited to the Western regional competition based on its first-place finish in the “Communications Mission Champion” state competition in Wenatchee. This event tested student skills with the use of VEX V6 drones in four disciplines:

• Teamwork: Collaborative flight missions between two different school teams

• Autonomous Flight Skills: Drone challenges using pre-programmed code 

• Piloting Skills: Manual obstacle course navigation and precision maneuvering

• Competition Logbook: Documentation of the team's engineering process, strategy, and their season’s flight logs

Team captain, Natalie Lund, looked back on the event with pride. She said, “I am extremely proud of West Valley’s team for all the preparation and work they put in toward the competition in Reno. The trip not only let us see what this event would be on a regional level, but also let us get a taste of what’s to come and be hungry for more. This was a great opportunity for students from West Valley to get hands-on experience with learning teamwork, interview skills, public speaking, and apply them in other situations besides just school.”

Although West Valley’s team did not advance to the national competition, team members developed their skills, and they are looking forward to next year’s competition.