CYBERJAYA – The National Academy for Drone Sports Excellence (Aksadron) is touted to be the future of drone sports in Malaysia when it had its groundbreaking ceremony in March in Kuantan, Pahang.
The centre, which is expected to complete its construction by year end, is the first and only centre of excellence for drone sports in the country operated by Futurise Sdn Bhd – a company under the Finance Ministry.
“Futurise, as the operator of Aksadron, is looking into creating a regulatory sandbox for drone racing, gathering key regulators and industry players with the aim of creating guidelines or a code of practice that provides for a structured and conducive framework to boost the growth of this nascent sport,” Futurise chief executive officer Rosihan Zain told The Vibes.
Rosihan also noted that Futurise has the National Drone Sports Strategic Roadmap in the pipeline to chart the way forward for drone sports in Malaysia.
The roadmap will be crafted in collaboration with key stakeholders and representatives from various quarters associated with drone sports like Malaysia Sports Aviation Federation, Drone Racing Association of Malaysia, National Sports Institute, Data Sukan and others.
“Aksadron will lead the charge for drone sports development, cognisant of the potential synergy that can be created with the bigger drone technology ecosystem in the country.
“As entrusted by the government to be the centre of excellence for drone sports, Aksadron will be a one-stop centre for drone racing, featuring an internationally sanctioned drone racing circuit, maker workshops, training and upskilling with various programmes designed for all levels.”
Rosihan was met at the RegTalk panel discussion hosted by Futurise here on Thursday on the topic “Drone Sports – Can Malaysia Dominate the Emerging Sport?”, which was moderated by Astro SuperSport presenter Reem Shahwa.
Malaysian Sports Aviation Federation vice president Muhaimin Osman, who was one of the panellists, emphasised that drone sport is more than just about racing on the circuit, as it promotes mental fitness and engineering skills amongst participants.
“You have a team full of engineers to understand the mechanics involving a drone and also a pilot to safely navigate the device while at the same time thinking of the strategy to outdo your opponent in order to win a league,” he said.
Meanwhile, Malaysia Civil Aviation Authority flight operations assistant director Capt Illyaquila Fateen Ismail also added that piloting a drone is more than just about navigation, as drone fliers need to “be wary of the safety of others and themselves.
“Drones can fly at 120 miles per hour in a second. Is not that scary?
“So, if we do not work something out to give an outlet on drone racing, we are going to have a lot of drones flying around without supervision and invading other people’s personal areas.
“We need to have a regulatory framework for drone sports so that people can be responsible for manning the device and eventually get involved in the international drone competition more seriously.”
Drone sports first started in 2011 but gained traction in 2015 after the founding of two organisations that are well known today among the drone sports community – MultiGP and Drone Racing League.
It has been further acknowledged by the federal government after Finance Minister Datuk Seri Tengku Zafrul Tengku Abdul Aziz announced in October that a RM5 million budget will be allocated to create a centre of excellence for drone sports. – The Vibes, August 7, 2022
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