Ukraine introduces civil drone operator training in vocational schools

"This year, seven vocational schools in Lviv, Dnipropetrovsk, Kyiv, Kirovohrad, Mykolaiv, Sumy, and Chernihiv oblasts will offer training for civil drone operators," Ukraine's Digital Minister announced.

Mar 2, 2024 - 13:01

Ukraine introduces civil drone operator training in vocational schools

Ukraine will implement a “civil drone operator” education program in vocational schools across seven oblasts, Mykhailo Fedorov, Minister of Digital Transformation, announced on 1 March.

“This year, seven vocational schools in Lviv, Dnipropetrovsk, Kyiv, Kirovohrad, Mykolaiv, Sumy, and Chernihiv oblasts will offer training for civil drone operators,” Fedorov said.

He explained that the program is part of vocational education reform and that drones were purchased and instructors trained with the support of the European Union. Plans include expanding the network of vocational schools and establishing an educational standard to fully prepare such specialists.

“Learning how to operate a drone is vital nowadays in Ukraine. These drones are used for sowing, rescue operations, demining, assessing damage from military actions, and journalists use them to document the war,” Fedorov noted.

Drone operation training. Credit: Maksym Kozytskyi/TG

Maksym Kozytskyi, head of the Lviv Oblast Military Administration, earlier announced on Telegram that vocational schools in Lviv and Dnipropetrovsk oblasts were the first to introduce the profession. Five more educational institutions in Kyiv, Kirovohrad, Mykolaiv, Sumy, and Chernihiv oblasts will soon join them.

“In 2022, we proposed this idea to the EU representation in our country, and it responded positively. Later, the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine approved an interregional working group that developed the foundation for the new profession. In particular, we managed to create three training programs: primary professional training, course training, and teamwork,” Kozytskyi added.

In January, Fedorov introduced the “People’s Drone” project, offering Ukrainians a free training program to assemble FPV (first-person view) drones at home.

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