Straight answers to the questions educators and administrators ask before they buy, and help finding the money to pay for it. What a program costs, which drone holds up in a classroom, how Perkins V applies, what the rules require, and what to do now that the Parrot Mambo and Tello are gone.
A full breakdown of what a drone program actually costs a school: drones, curriculum, replacement parts, and the recurring costs most budgets miss. Written for the person who has to defend the number.
Read the cost breakdown →What to look for in a classroom drone: programmability, repairability, NDAA Section 889 compliance, and whether the curriculum goes anywhere after the first flight.
Compare classroom drones →How Perkins V applies to CTE drone programs, which spending categories fit, and how to position a purchase so it survives review.
See how Perkins V applies →Both drones went end of life and left programs stranded. What to move to, what happens to your existing lessons, and how to avoid the same thing happening again.
Read the replacement guide →The December 2025 FCC ruling and ASDA changed what federal funds can buy and what can still enter the US market. Three questions that separate a program you can keep from one that strands you.
Read the three questions →Tell us about your program and we will research local and national grant opportunities specific to your situation and share our findings with you directly.
We will review your submission and respond directly. No automated replies.
Hopper Firmware 2.0 is here. A brand new sensor fusion and flight stability algorithm delivers decisively better flight.
Hopper holds position better, responds more precisely, and handles rough landings without drama. Crash detection was rebuilt, so a normal landing no longer leaves the drone unable to take off again.
Every Hopper gets it. Free. It loads onto drones already in the field through the FTW Fly app in a few minutes. Nothing to buy, nothing to ship back, no new hardware.
That is possible because FTW owns its entire flight control and telemetry stack. American built, wholly owned, zero outside dependency. When the software gets better, the drones already in your classroom get better with it.
Watch the walkthrough, then open FTW Fly and update yours.