Navy crewman educates Misawa youth on drones

  • Published
  • By Senior Airman Deana Heitzman
  • 35th Fighter Wing Public Affairs
The Misawa teen center hosted a drone safety symposium for children Dec. 8, honing in on the fundamentals of flying and using them near the flight line.

Children, ages eight to 18, had the chance to fly drones as well as learn how the military incorporates them in modern-day warfare.

“I thought this training would be an amazing opportunity for the youth to see how bilateral forces can work together to accomplish a mission that involves drones, something that is becoming quite popular in today's society,” said Casey Lademann, the 35th Force Support Squadron teen center director.

Growing up with a passion for aviation, Petty Officer 2nd Class Morgan Reeves, Naval Air Facility Misawa UC-12F Huron crewman, picked up a drone at a young age and hasn’t put them down since. The teen center asked him to share his knowledge with the children to ensure their safety while also putting on a fun and different type of symposium.

“One thing I wanted to get across to these kids was don’t fly anywhere close to aircraft or in their flight pattern,” said Reeves. “Drones are small and can easily be sucked up into an intake and cause a multimillion-dollar aircraft incident.”

In addition to flying near aircraft, Reeves explained drones shouldn’t be flown near or over public stadiums, places where a lot of people congregate and over historical buildings.

Drones are prohibited on-base, and when flown off-base it must be five nautical miles away from the flight line.

Children also received information regarding how the Air Force uses the RQ-4 Global Hawk to conquer the modern-day missions and how they differ from a manned aircraft.

“It gave the youth an opportunity to understand how a drone works and also learn why drones can benefit all kinds of operations varying from the military to your everyday citizen,” said Lademann.

The symposium ended with children test flying various drones and watching maneuvers performed by Reeves.

“Overall, whatever you fly for, either some good video shots, or just doing it for fun, there are always considerations to make on where you are flying,” said Reeves. “Drones can be very fun, if you understand how to properly use them and if you use them in the right areas.”