Drones In School releases March VelociDrone bonus track, opens national championship pathway

Drones In School released a VelociDrone bonus track on March 7, 2026 and announced a short, high-stakes time window that directly affects qualification to the 2026 national scholastic championship. The program’s March 7 update introduces an out-of-series opportunity that could alter which scholastic teams earn invitations to the Spring 2026 Championship, but the public announcement does not include the full mechanics or exact start-end times for that window.

The March bonus appears alongside the program’s 2025-26 Simulator Series framework, which runs four scheduled VelociDrone events with firm release dates and posting deadlines. The October Sim Race track was released October 1 and teams had until 11:59 PM ET on November 10 to post times. The November track was released November 3 with a December 7, 11:59 PM ET deadline. December’s track went live December 1 with a January 11, 11:59 PM ET posting cutoff. January’s track, listed as "DiS 2026 January Sim Race" and authored by DronesinSchool-Official, was released January 1 with a January 31, 11:59 PM ET deadline.

Under the published series rules, monthly placement points are awarded “based on their fastest pilot's posted best time on the track,” and “Teams will accumulate points through the four race series to earn a spot for the National Race.” To earn Season Race Points pilots must fly in Nemesis mode and be on a registered Drones In School team connected to the program’s R.A.C.E.S platform. The program’s pages also include the instruction, “DON'T FORGET TO CONNECT YOUR VELOCIDRONE ACCOUNT IN R.A.C.E.S!” and state that “Simulator races are free to enter and participate for all registered teams.”

The November event carried a specific equipment relaxation: “FOR NOVEMBER, PILOTS CAN FLY ANY MICRO CLASS AIRCRAFT FOR THE SIMULATOR RACE!” The program also flags VelociDrone access as an administrative item, noting “Don't have Velocidrone? Contact Us for special academic pricing options,” indicating software licensing remains a consideration even though entries are free.

What remains unresolved in the March 7 posting is whether the bonus track will award placement points under the same Nemesis-mode rules, or whether it functions as a separate sudden-deadline pathway that can instantaneously change which teams receive Championship invitations. The March announcement language asserts the bonus “directly affects qualification,” but the published fragment stops short of specifying whether Nemesis mode, team registration, or free-entry status apply to the bonus window.

The stakes are clear for teams near the qualification cutoff: season points are calculated from each month’s fastest pilot time, and any supplemental scoring opportunity added on March 7 could reshuffle invites to the Spring 2026 Championship. The program’s simulator-race page will determine whether the March bonus integrates into season scoring or creates a distinct qualification channel.