The Collegiate Aviation Review International

Lessons from the 2023 IEEE Autonomous Drone Chase Challenge

2025-02-20T19:03:18+00:00

The IEEE Drone Chase Challenge was held in 2022 and 2023 to foster development in Unmanned Aerial Systems and to provide a venue for collegiate students developing integrated UAS solutions in which to compete. The challenge is comprised of two stages: an online simulator-based stage and a physical in-person final. The development of each competitor’s unique solutions and difficulties faced by each finalist team are described herein. Improvements for other future competitions are suggested based on the experiences of the competitors and hosts from the 2023 IEEE Drone Chase Challenge. First, software integration and documentation must be complete and easy to follow for competitors, allowing them to focus on solution development, rather than troubleshooting errors. Second, scoring metrics must be designed to test for robustness to mitigate the effect of luck and other external conditions on the evaluation of a solution. Despite the current limitations realized during the competition, competitors, hosts, and the research community benefit from developing soft and technical skills through competition participation.

An Examination of the Implications of Space Exploration Through the Lens of Five Ethical Philosophies

2025-03-21T13:32:29+00:00

In the early 21st century, the rapid advance of space exploration has resulted in both significant scientific and economic prospects and profound ethical challenges. This paper examines the ethics of modern space exploration through five relevant principal ethical philosophies: Utilitarianism, Deontological Ethics, Virtue Ethics, Environmental Ethics, and Feminist Ethics. Utilitarianism evaluates actions based on outcomes, advocating for those that maximize overall well-being, while Deontological Ethics emphasizes adherence to moral duties and principles. Virtue Ethics focuses on the character and virtues of individuals and organizations, while Environmental Ethics highlights the intrinsic value of non-human environments and advocates for their preservation. Feminist Ethics stresses inclusivity, equity, and social justice. The paper develops a comprehensive ethical framework to guide humanity’s ventures into space by integrating these different perspectives.

Pan-Caribbean Airlines: Unlocking Regional Aviation Potential

2025-06-23T17:15:32+00:00

The Caribbean's air transport system is facing significant challenges, including operational fragmentation, excessive costs, and inadequate inter-island connectivity. These challenges limit its ability to support the region’s heavily tourism-dependent economies. This research evaluates whether consolidating small Caribbean airlines into a single or virtual Pan-Caribbean carrier could transform regional air travel. Based on financial analysis, historical traffic data, and case comparisons with airline mergers in South America and the US, the paper simulates the anticipated efficiencies resulting from route consolidation, fleet standardization, and common operational services. The research concludes that consolidation may create a regional GDP impact of up to $3.3 billion and generate over 200,000 new jobs. Research highlights regulatory harmonization, stakeholder coordination, and governance reforms as essential conditions for success. Despite transparency challenges, a unified Caribbean airline offers a compelling path to regional economic integration, improved connectivity, and long-term sustainability in aviation.

Implementation of VoiceThread in Online Aviation Education: A Pilot Program Towards Creating Community

2025-06-06T22:49:38+00:00

VoiceThread is an online multimedia and multimodal platform used by education institutions across the world. The researchers in this paper implemented VoiceThread in Aviation Education to create a sense of community and decrease feelings of student isolation when taking online courses. Participants surveyed were undergraduate students majoring in a variety of degree programs in Aviation Education. All participants were enrolled in an asynchronous online Ethics & Professional Responsibility course. Enrolled students participated in VoiceThread assignments, creating original slides, recording themselves discussing the topic in an audio and visual format, and responding to their peers with video and audio comments. The researchers analyzed quantitative Likert scale items, and qualitative open-ended questions. Participants reported feeling engaged and described the course as interactive when asked to describe their course environment. Additionally, they report feeling less isolated because of VoiceThread increasing their sense of community in the course. Finally, students were asked what challenges exist for building an online community in Aviation Education, and how instructors can further support the community in their online courses. The results indicated that students were aware of the difficulty of creating community in online courses, either due to schedule restraints, motivation and/or availability of peers, and course design limitations. Students identified VoiceThread as a good EdTech tool that helped foster community in their course and appreciated the opportunity to interact with their peers. Many students recommended that educators create an online learning environment that leaves space for community building, either in relation to the content, group work and required course activities or via informal interactions to create “outside-of-class” opportunities for students to spontaneously create their own community. Overall, the researchers were encouraged by the student responses and reiterate the need to create a sense of community in online Aviation Education courses.