Aviation

K-State team places second in national airport design contest

By Jerry Siebenmark

July 5, 2017 11:16 AM

Airport management and unmanned aircraft systems students at the Kansas State University Polytechnic Campus performed a proof of concept at the Kit Carson County Airport in Colorado as part of their winning research proposal. From left are: Daniel Melia, Kit Carson County Airport manager; Hsin Huang, senior in airport management; Preston Renfro, May 2017 bachelor’s graduate in unmanned aircraft systems; Ian Bonsall, May 2017 bachelor’s graduate in airport management; Trevor Witt, data analyst in the Applied Aviation Research Center; David Burchfield, UAS teaching assistant professor and degree option coordinator; Chris Senn, UAS teaching assistant professor; and Elliot Rogers, May 2017 bachelor’s graduate in airport management. Kansas State University Polytechnic Campus Courtesy photo

A student team from Kansas State University Polytechnic in Salina placed second in a national airport design competition.

The five-student team’s research project examined an alternative to typical aerial data collection methods at airports using unmanned aircraft systems.

Their project, “Airport Imagery and Geospatial Data Collection Through the Use of UAS,” came in second behind Tufts University in the Airport Operation and Maintenance category of the Airport Cooperative Research Program’s annual University Design Competition for Addressing Airport Needs.

“This is the first time that any K-State student has entered the ACRP competition, so taking home second place is quite an honor and it reflects strongly on our students’ work ethic, ambitious ideas and ability to problem solve,” Tara Harl, airport management associate professor and option coordinator, said in a news release Wednesday.

Jerry Siebenmark: 316-268-6576, @jsiebenmark

This story was originally published July 5, 2017 at 11:16 AM with the headline "K-State team places second in national airport design contest."

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