Despite the widespread belief that gamers are the best drone operators, this has proven to be incorrect.
According to an unexpected conclusion drawn by the U.S. Marine Corps, the best drone pilots are actually former bikers.
This was reported by RBC-Ukraine, citing Business Insider.
It turns out that skills in operating motorcycles, jet skis, or boats provide a much better foundation for piloting combat drones than video games, explained Major Mike Olivares, the course supervisor for operator training.
“If a person has experience in technical work ‘outdoors’, they have a much higher chance of success than someone who has only played games,” he said.
According to Olivares, the key factor is the “softness of touch” and the feel of the equipment in a real environment. Drone operation requires precise handling of small switches.
Extreme accuracy is needed to control speed, altitude, and direction simultaneously. Gamers excel in zero-weight simulators. However, when explosives or other payloads are attached to the drone, the flight dynamics change.
Bikers and boat drivers, who are accustomed to physical inertia and environmental resistance outdoors, adapt to these changes much faster. In contrast, gamers are not used to this. About 20% of students drop out precisely due to their inability to master the sensitivity of the controllers.
Meanwhile, it is worth noting that a Ukrainian pilot has, for the first time in history, shot down two Iranian Shahed kamikaze drones at a distance of 500 kilometers from the launch point using a STING interceptor. Thus, he set a new world record.
Recently, the Ministry of Defense has allowed the operation of the “Shvydun” drone, which is one of the most effective interceptors of “Shaheds” due to its ability to stay airborne for over two hours.
Additionally, developers are working on “smart” swarm technology, where one operator will be able to control a group of interceptor drones both nearby and remotely.
