Skip to main content

Hone your drone skills with a touch of Tron in this quadcopter arena

DJI arena
Image used with permission by copyright holder
Own a drone? If you live in a city, finding a place to fly your machine may prove even more challenging than your first-ever flight. So how does the idea of a purpose-built drone arena sound? A safe space where you can hone your skills and swap tips with other drone enthusiasts?

For hobbyist and pro pilots in South Korea, such a place is about to become a reality. It’s the work of drone giant DJI, which in a couple of weeks is opening its first-ever drone arena in a spot just south of Seoul.

Recommended Videos

The 1400-square-meter facility features an adjustable LED-lit circuit for race training and screens offering pilots first-person views of their flying machine.

Please enable Javascript to view this content

Safety nets should save your skin if someone’s (or maybe yours?) remotely controlled copter careers out of control, and if a heavy landing puts your machine out of action, there’s a maintenance room where you can get it fixed – providing the damage isn’t too severe, of course.

DJI’s Moon Tae-hyun said he hopes the new arena will provide a “safe and fun environment for people to experience the technology first-hand, whether they’re skilled enthusiasts or someone who’s just curious to learn.”

Moon said one of the biggest advantages of the indoor venue was that it’ll provide a space for drone enthusiasts to fly throughout the year, regardless of weather conditions.

Besides entertaining members of the public, the DJI Arena will also be available for individual and group bookings, corporate event rental, and as a venue for workshops, too.

“For skilled drone pilots and UAV clubs, the arena can also offer the stage for more advanced flying experiences and drone racing,” DJI said in a release.

All in all, it looks like a fun place to test out your flying skills, though we’re wondering how many pilots will be able to use the place at the same time before things start to go awry in the sky.

Trevor Mogg
Contributing Editor
Not so many moons ago, Trevor moved from one tea-loving island nation that drives on the left (Britain) to another (Japan)…
How to watch DJI unveil its new FPV drone live online today
watch djis new teaser for its incoming fpv quadcopter dji drone

Redefine Flying | March 2, 2021 | 9 AM EST

DJI is about to unveil a new drone, and you can watch the entire event live online.

Read more
Dazzling drone display targets coronavirus in South Korea
dazzling drone display targets coronavirus in south korea show

The government of South Korea recently put on a dazzling drone display to thank people for their efforts in fighting the coronavirus pandemic, while also reminding them not to let up.

The nation received global praise early on in the pandemic for acting quickly and robustly to slow its spread, with only 284 deaths having so far been attributed to the virus in a nation of just over 50 million people.

Read more
Feds ban Chinese-made drones over spying fears. Could your drone be next?
DJI Mavic Mini flying

The U.S. Department of Interior (DoI) has essentially banned Chinese-made drones and drone parts because of the fear of these drones’ potential to be used for spying.

The Wall Street Journal reports that the new no-fly rule, which takes effect immediately, is explicitly aimed at foreign-made drones and that the only fly exceptions would be for responding to natural disasters or other emergencies.

Read more