In 1972, a group of United States Air Force officers established the National Association of Remotely Piloted Vehicles (NARPV) in response to the growing use of remotely piloted aircraft in the Vietnam War. The goal of the group was to promote and educate those in need on the growing benefits of these tools. In 1974, the NARPV held it’s first national symposium in Dayton, OH. The meeting was a great success. As more and more remote controlled and unmanned vehicles were developed, the international nonprofit organization changed their name to Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International (AUVSI). Today, as stated on their website, “The Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International (AUVSI), the world’s largest nonprofit organization dedicated to the advancement of unmanned systems and robotics, represents corporations and professionals from more than 60 countries involved in industry, government and academia. AUVSI members work in the defense, civil and commercial markets.”

One of the ways AUVSI continues to support the world of drones and unmanned vehicles is through carrying out the tradition started in 1974 with that first symposium. For years now, members of the drone community have looked forward to AUVSI’s annual XPONENTIAL drone show, the largest of it’s kind in the world. “XPONENTIAL is the annual hallmark event that brings together professionals from across all sectors of the unmanned systems industry,” Airborne International Response Team (AIRT) Executive Director Christopher Todd said. This year, the nonprofit public safety organization AIRT announced that they were teaming up with AUVSI in order to truly demonstrate just how vital drones have become to the world of safety at XPONENTIAL 2020. The event was set to take place May 4-6 at the Boston Convention and Exhibition Center in Boston, MA. XPONENTIAL 2020 planned to have over 700 exhibitions, over 150 seminars, daily key note speakers, and thousands of industry professionals to connect with.

But then COVID-19 changed all of these plans. For weeks, AUVSI CEO Brian Wynne and the rest of his team closely monitored the course of the pandemic and how it would effect the drone show. Finally, in the begging of March AUVSI announced “We are closely monitoring the COVID-19 coronavirus situation and want to assure everyone that your health and safety are a top priority. We are in close communication with the Boston Convention and Exhibition Center, as well as related health, public safety and transportation authorities, to make sure that appropriate disease prevention, monitoring, and response protocols are in place for XPONENTIAL 2020.  Based on currently available information from health authorities, our present plan is to proceed with XPONENTIAL 2020 as scheduled. If our assessment of the situation changes, based on new and evolving developments or updated information, we will promptly update this statement regarding the status of XPONENTIAL 2020 accordingly.” The announcement went on to detail some of the safety measures being taken such as extra hand washing stations, trained medics to screen individuals who may be at risk, and frequent cleaning of all public areas.

Unfortunately, things did not plan out as hoped for. The Boston Convention and Exhibition Center was not able to secure the extra needed space and safety protocols to meet the new needs of the show. The drone show was officially postponed until further notice. On May 4, 2020, what should have been the opening day of XPONENTIAL 2020, Brian Wynne announced that the show would go on, but at the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center in Dallas, TX on October 5-8 2020. Brian went on to state, “These changes will allow XPONENTIAL to remain the knowledge exchange and marketplace you have come to expect, while also enabling us to implement social distancing and other safety measures to keep all attendees safe. We will communicate additional details on those measures as they develop over the coming weeks and months.”

By pushing the show back several months and to a larger location, AUVSI will have plenty of time to prepare what they believe to be a rewarding and safe experience. The hope is also to have seen a great drop in COVID-19 cases by then, an overall healthier world. But one thing that has become abundantly clear over the course of this outbreak, is just how useful drones have become in our society. Educational forums like XPONENTIAL will further the advancement of how drones will help a current and post pandemic civilization. As Brian said, “For the past few months, we have all been focused on ‘adapting’ — to remote work, to social distance, to new business models, and to disrupted plans. Fortunately, ours is an industry long defined by adaptation. For 48 years we have witnessed how innovation and resolve meet challenges head-on to reshape critical missions and business operations for the better. Our commitment to supporting the unmanned systems community remains unwavering, so amidst the current global health crisis we, too, must adapt to fulfill that mission.”