A toy helicopter sparked his interest. Now he’s building drones
Shafriel Nur Iman will represent Singapore in building and piloting drones at WorldSkills Shanghai.
In Singapore, Shafriel Nur Iman, now 18, was captivated by a toy helicopter gifted to him on his sixth birthday. This seemingly innocent gift ignited a lifelong passion that led him to compete at the prestigious 48th WorldSkills Competition in Shanghai from September 22 to 27. He will be competing against 10 opponents, including representatives from countries like China, Japan, and the United Arab Emirates.
Shafriel's father, an accountant, noticed his son's fascination with flying and gifted him a toy helicopter annually. At the age of four, Shafriel experienced a flight simulator during a school trip to the Singapore Flyer, which sparked his desire to become a pilot. As he delved into the world of drones during his secondary school's applied learning programme, he realized that drones, requiring skills in physics and mathematics, were a perfect fit for him.
Currently, an aviation management student at Republic Polytechnic, Shafriel has developed a keen interest in utilizing drones for security and defence purposes. While drones are increasingly being employed in various sectors, including military, environmental conservation, disaster recovery, infrastructure assessment, and wildlife monitoring, Shafriel aims to contribute to advancing drone technology by extending their flight time.
Invited to represent Singapore at the WorldSkills competition, Shafriel opted for this opportunity over a Changi Airport internship. He was in the midst of training for drone soccer when he was approached about the new category. Shafriel saw this as a unique chance to enhance his future prospects and decided to pursue it without any distractions. He trains at RP's Unmanned Aerial Vehicles Centre, assisting with operations like charging and maintaining batteries.
During his rigorous training, Shafriel focuses on theory and engages in timed practice for the competition's various stages. Programming, a crucial but poorly covered aspect in his course, posed a significant challenge. He taught himself Python, a programming language, through RP's robotics lecturer and online videos. Despite the steep learning curve, Shafriel admits that his primary strategy to stay focused is to "zone out everything else, shut off my brain and work like a robot."
Written by urgent.news from Straits Times's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
