Missouri S&T’s Multirotor Design Team placed sixth overall out of 81 teams at the 2026 Student Unmanned Aerial Systems competition, an international event held at Skyway Range in Tulsa, Oklahoma. The team was the highest-ranked U.S. competitor.

The competition challenges student-led teams to complete missions involving flight endurance, risk mapping and supply delivery using an unmanned aerial vehicle, while also submitting a technical design report and public website.

Missouri S&T’s drone, Sparrow, successfully completed all three mission objectives. The aircraft flew 10 miles in waypoint laps, reached speeds up to 70 mph, completed a full scan of the search area for risk mapping and successfully delivered a beacon to a designated target location.

The team earned seventh place in the mission category and finished with an overall score of 824.37.

Thomas Strohmeier, the team’s chief executive officer and a senior in aerospace engineering, credited the team’s accomplishment on hands-on experience, adaptability and technical excellence.

The Multirotor Design Team has provided Missouri S&T students with opportunities to design and build advanced multirotor aircraft since 2016 and regularly competes in international aerial robotics competitions.

Members of the Multirotor Design Team who traveled to competition are:

• Alen Avdic, a master’s degree student in computer science from St. Louis
• Lucas Bleich, a sophomore in aerospace engineering from California, Missouri
• Jason Buss, a junior in aerospace engineering from St. Louis
• Pierce Cummings, a sophomore in mechanical engineering from St. Louis
• Jesse Jeffery, a sophomore in mechanical engineering from West Plains, Missouri
• Cameron Larimore, a senior in electrical engineering from Russellville, Missouri
• Ben Lemongelli, a senior in mechanical engineering from Monroe City, Missouri
• Peter Maud, a junior in computer engineering from Tulsa, Oklahoma
• Eden Niedergeses, a sophomore in electrical engineering from St. Louis
• Ben Nolie, a senior in computer engineering from Springfield, Missouri
• Matthew Parks, a sophomore in aerospace engineering from Salem, Missouri
• Nathan Rein, a sophomore in mechanical engineering from Columbia, Illinois
• Harper Reinhardt, a senior in computer engineering from St. Louis
• Thomas Strohmeier, a senior in aerospace engineering who is pursuing a Ph.D., from East Alton, Illinois
• Chance Tran-Pham, a sophomore in aerospace engineering from San Diego
• Zach Warhoover, a senior in mechanical engineering from Ballwin, Missouri
• Matthew Wasser, a sophomore in electrical engineering and computer engineering from Bridgeton, Missouri.