Military International Drone Racing Tournament (MIDRT) & British Army Tactical Drone Competition (BATDC)
Royal Military Academy Sandhurst, United Kingdom • 14–18 September 2026
The Military International Drone Racing Tournament (MIDRT) and the British Army Tactical Drone Competition (BATDC) will be delivered concurrently at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst. This flagship event will see the BATDC and MIDRT operate concurrently, intersecting UAS remote pilot skill in sport with tactical capability within the UK Armed Forces and its partner nations.
Tournament Specifications
Dual System Tracks
MIDRT: High-performance open drone racing.
BATDC: Rigorous field operational deployment tracks testing capabilities against an active hunter force.
Team Allocation
International: Four person teams from allied nations.
Safety Authority
Operations structured within the CAA Article 16 regulatory platform.
Event Week Snapshot
Registration
Arrival, registration and airframe familiarisation.
International: RMAS Victory College
Competition Day 1
Domestic competitors will compete on the MIDRT course. International competitors will compete on BATDC stands.
Competition Day 2
International competitors will compete on the MIDRT course. Domestic competitors will compete on BATDC stands.
Competition Day 3
MIDRT Finals. Concurrent to the finals, a Distinguished Visitors Day, FPV military capability conference and industry sponsor day at Royal Military Academy Sandhurst and will culminate in the prize-giving ceremony.
STEM Engagement Day
Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) Engagement Day for local cadet units. The day is aimed to encourage and foster engagement through competitive uncrewed aerial systems (UAS) and First Person View (FPV) racing.
British Army Tactical Drone Competition (BATDC)
The tactical drone competition will consist of a hunter force harassing competitors as they move between stands designed to test tactically relevant UAS skills.
Find I: Locate friendly forces.
Strike I: Moving vehicle interdiction.
FIND II and STRIKE II: Use ISR UAS to locate targets and cross-cue FPV UAS for strike.
STRIKE III: Bomb drop onto a static target.
STRIKE IV: Intercept fixed-wing UAS using FPV UAS.
SURVIVE: Camouflage and concealment to minimise visual signature against ISR UAS.
Technical Compliance
RF Spectrum Compliance
All operational equipment must function explicitly within authorized United Kingdom radio parameters.
LiPo Logistics
Air transport regulations limit operators to a maximum of 6 LiPo batteries each, with individual cells keeping under 100Wh capacity thresholds.
Ground Notes
Operations are partitioned across separate Royal Military Academy Sandhurst training sectors to guarantee safety margins.