FORT PIERCE, Fla. – The developers of a new drone-based school defense system said the technology can respond to an active shooter in as little as 15 seconds.
The program, led by a former U.S. Navy SEAL and several nationally ranked drone pilots, was showcased Monday during a live demonstration at Indian River State College in Fort Pierce.
“It’s about letting every kid know they are defended by an air force that’s going to be there instantaneously and that’s going to protect them,” one of the program’s creators said during the event.
The drones demonstrated Monday broke through classroom windows, tracked targets in hallways and, if necessary, can strike an assailant at speeds of up to 80 mph. During one test, a drone hit a mannequin in the head, drawing audible reactions from law enforcement officers observing the demonstration.
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The system’s pilots include three of the top first-person-view drone competitors in the United States. One of them, Christian Van Sloun — known professionally as Amari — was previously ranked the top drone racer in the country.
“It’s really cool to use the skills I’ve developed over the past decade to save kids’ lives,” Van Sloun said.
The drones are flown remotely from the company’s operations center in Austin, Texas. In participating schools, they are stored in ceiling-mounted boxes similar to sprinkler system housings. Teachers can activate the system using emergency buttons positioned throughout the school.
“When they press, all the video comes up in our operations center, and we can see what’s happening in the school in real time,” said Keith Marston of Campus Guardian Angels, the company behind the program.
Each drone is equipped with a siren, loudspeaker and the ability to deploy tear gas. Physical impact is considered a last resort.
During the demonstration, an air gun was used in an attempt to shoot down the drones, but the moving targets were not hit. Program co-founder Justin Marston said live demonstrations are essential to show the technology’s capabilities.
“At this demonstration, we want to show people how effective drones are against people with guns,” Marston said. “No matter how many times we say it, you have to see it. You could hear today the officers gasping when it hit the dummy.”
Campus Guardian Angels received $557,000 in state funding for a pilot program and plans to deploy 120 drones across schools in Leon, Volusia and Miami-Dade counties.