From May 12–16, 2025, participants from across Europe gathered in Darıca, Türkiye for the transformative “Foundation Training: Navigating Drone Technology”, hosted by the Darıca District Directorate of National Education (DARICA MEM). This immersive, week-long training equipped educators with hands-on experience in drone systems, environmental data collection, and IoT applications, as part of the Flight project.

🛬 A Strong Start

The program opened on May 12 with a warm welcome and introductions from partner organizations. Participants were introduced to the project’s scope and objectives, followed by a deep dive into Work Package 2 (WP2), including scheduling and materials review.

🤖 From Drone Design to Flight

Over the course of the week, attendees engaged in a rich blend of theory and practice, including:

• 🛩️ Rotary Wing UAVs – Understanding their structure, mechanics, and areas of application
• 💡 Hands-on drone assembly and programming using ESP8266 microcontrollers, environmental sensors, GPS modules, and microSD storage
• 🌍 Real-world challenges — from precision agriculture to climate monitoring and air pollution tracking
• 📡 Autonomous drone flights and manual remote control exercises

Participants also explored how to visualize collected data using Google Maps and Kepler.gl, enhancing their understanding of drone-based monitoring systems.

🧪 Flying Labs: Applied Learning in Action

One of the week’s highlights was the outdoor drone experiment, where participants mounted their sensor kits onto drones, conducted flights, and captured environmental data. This hands-on segment brought together everything covered in earlier sessions—from hardware setup to data logging and geolocation tagging.

🧭 Educator Empowerment and Innovation

Throughout the training, educators not only built technical capacity but also discussed how drone technology can enhance learning across subjects—from STEM to geography and environmental education.

Sessions were led by experts from Darıca MEM, Mayfly, Successos Criativos, and professors from Gebze Technical University (GTÜ), offering a well-rounded educational experience.

🗣️ Collaboration and Reflection

The final day was dedicated to project evaluations and partner coordination meetings. Reflections on the week’s accomplishments confirmed the training’s value in building digital competence and preparing teachers to bring drone-based innovation into classrooms and communities.