The choreography design and simulation of the light show, which was performed by the Directorate of Communications with 300 unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs-drones) at the Presidential Complex on August 30 Victory Day and marked the celebrations, was entirely developed by Turkish designers. 37 people took part in the 1.5-month preparation phase of the show organized for the first time on such a large scale.
Director of Communications Prof. Fahrettin Altun said in his statement a couple of days before August 30 that Victory Day would be celebrated this year as well in a way worthy of our state’s glory and with an utterly different enthusiasm. In this regard, the Victory Concert and the light show with 300 drones performed at the Presidential Complex drew great interest. During the drone show, which was performed above the Presidential Complex facing the July 15 Martyrs’ Monument and controlled with special software, 300 drones modified with led lights were used.
During the show, 300 drones displayed figures depicting the solidarity, mobilization, struggle, and victory of the Turkish nation in the War of Independence as well as the Turkish flag, Atatürk’s silhouette, and Presidential Seal in addition to messages that said “August 30”, “Victory Day”, “Victory of a Nation”.
Following the show that the Directorate of Communications organized on July 15 Democracy and National Unity Day with 200 drones above the Kuleli campus, this was the first time such a large scale show with 300 drones was organized in Turkey on August 30.
Preparation took 1.5 months
The technical infrastructure and preparations of the drone show that drew great attention also attracted many. Choreography design and the simulation of the drone show were entirely developed by Turkish designers. 37 people took part in the 1.5-month preparation phase of the show. The team included 7 software engineers, 2 industrial engineers, 3 3D choreographers, 2 project coordinators, and a team of 23 drone operators.
Preparation, design, and programming phases required a total of 5,060 man/hours of work. First, a special story pattern was created on the computer for August 30 Victory Day. Drone layout, light and colour choices, and music integration were also modelled by computer software. Simulation tests were conducted on the digital medium. The simulations focused on the terrestrial and aerial coordinates as well as the GPS frequencies of the Presidential Complex. Real-time simulation calculations were made for the perfect show.
27 hours of test flights for 3 nights
Moreover, the first test flights planned for the content were performed in the garden of the Presidential Complex. The test flights at the protocol yard of the Presidential Complex lasted 27 hours and took 3 nights. Spectrum sweeps were carried out by domestic software in all frequencies around the Presidential Complex in order to secure the flights. The Directorate of Administrative Affairs of the Presidency and the Information Technologies and Communication Authority provided the necessary support for the flights to be performed smoothly. 5 drones, 4 fixed cameras, and 2 jimmy jibs were used for broadcasting the show.
The drone light show themed 'August 30 Victory Day” was streamed live on the YouTube channels and social media accounts of the Presidency and the Directorate of Communications as well as all television channels.