When I signed up to volunteer at a full-day bootcamp with FlightCrowd, I honestly didn’t know what to expect. All I knew was FlightCrowd is an incredible organisation pushing on open doors and introducing opportunities to young people – and I wanted to be part of that!

In Dec 2024, I facilitated a ‘Propel to Flight’ full day design workshop for a group of 14-19 year olds. I was also one of four judges at Flight Crowd’s bootcamp.

Each team was tasked to create their visions of a working drone with 3 winning teams judged across 3 categories.

Leading my Amazing Team

The group was split into individual breakouts. I headed up the BEST team anyone could ask for (team 8). We came up with a team name – team 8 became Sky Med Innovators. (I thought it was quite unique to have a team name – it’s like being on The Apprentice. The team agreed!).

I started with quick introductions and an ice-breaker to bring the team together.

I later introduced the brief to the team detailing the task and the deadline. An extra aspect I decided to add was the pilot competency framework – I emphasised how important it was to see the competencies being utilised throughout this task. The floor was then opened to a group discussion.

Excellent leadership and team collaboration was shown. Key decision-making and problem solving meant a purpose, application and the end user experience was quickly established.

The team agreed on a hospital drone to deliver medical supplies to remote, inaccessible areas. The drone was known as MediFly!

Throughout the design phase the team did really well in considering different design aspects and possible limitations. Constructively challenging ideas and bringing up new one that added value was an excellent skill to see.

Super proud of the way the team gelled together! They worked collaboratively, delegated tasks based on strengths and worked under tight time constraints to bring the project to life!

From detailed hand-drawn sketches to critically reviewing current designs and presenting thought-provoking weathering solutions – the eye-to-detail was second to none!

The final presentation brought the whole puzzle together and highlighted the whole teams efforts.

I was super thrilled when Sky Med Innovators were announced as a winner! Very well deserved.

Final Panel Judge

I also took part in judging a different team and the feasibility of the drone design. We had some AMAZING designs! I was blown away by the level of ingenuity in the various designs.

One of the biggest take-aways for me was the utilisation of the competency framework. I absolutely loved seeing the great collaboration, leadership, decision-making and problem-solving in the team. And hats off to team members who challenged ideas and brought new eyes to the table – I absolutely loved that! This is the peak of what engineering is all about.

Overall, it was a great day spent well! Special mention and thank you to Mariya Tarabanovska for inviting me to take part in this amazing bootcamp and Department for Transport (DfT), United Kingdom for funding this bootcamp.

Thank you to the guest speakers for the amazing keynote speeches. Ben Rochelle Shivangi Joshi Ibby Mohammed Nurina Sharmin Maleha Khan Hannah McCann