WHEN VAA STUDENTS’ STARTUP ASPIRATIONS MEET RESOLUTION NO. 57-NQ/TW

Vietnam Aviation Academy hosts the Innovation and Startup Forum 2026 under the theme “Resolution 57 & VAA Students’ Aspirations: Launchpad for Innovation and Entrepreneurship”

At 8:30 AM on Wednesday, July 29, 2026, Hall F100 at Campus 2 of the Vietnam Aviation Academy (VAA) was packed with 500 students. Neither an opening convocation nor a standard academic seminar, this was the Innovation and Startup Forum 2026—where a Party resolution, an academy-enterprise handshake, and an authentic on-campus student startup journey converged to address a question shared by many: Is innovation and entrepreneurship meant only for someone else?

1. When Policy Clears the Runway

Assoc. Prof. Dr. Tran Hoai An – Secretary of the Party Committee, President of the Academy addresses the forum.

Prior to delving into entrepreneurship, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Tran Hoai An, Secretary of the Party Committee and President of the Academy, discussed a document often perceived as high-level and distant from student life: Resolution No. 57-NQ/TW issued by the Politburo on December 22, 2024. Yet, placed in the context of a student nurturing an idea, the Resolution’s three core tenets hit remarkably close to home:

First, science, technology, innovation, and digital transformation are identified for the first time as a top-tier breakthrough—no longer merely auxiliary activities alongside teaching, but the primary engine of development.

Second, and perhaps most meaningful for the youth: The Resolution explicitly embraces risk and development lag in scientific research and emerging technology trials. A student burning through an electronic circuit for the tenth time, or a startup stumbling on its initial launch—under the spirit of Resolution 57—are no longer viewed as “shameful failures,” but as acknowledged milestones on the innovation pathway.

Third, intellectuals and scientists are designated as the pivotal factor, enterprises and citizens form the center, and the State acts as the facilitator and strategist. Within this landscape, universities are positioned precisely as the connective hub among the “Three Pillars”: the State, the University, and the Enterprise.

Embracing this vision, the Academy is instituting concrete mechanisms for faculty and students alike: from integrating Innovation & Entrepreneurship into academic curricula and recognizing viable startup projects as alternative graduation theses, to establishing an incubation fund offering seed capital for high-potential ventures. In other words: the policy corridor is open; what remains is taking the leap.

2. A Handshake, A Concrete Commitment

Directly following the opening remarks, the auditorium witnessed a symbolic milestone: the formal cooperation signing between the Vietnam Aviation Academy and Saolatek—a tech enterprise established by a young entrepreneur who currently serves as Vice Chairman & CEO of the Vietnam Aviation, Space, and Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Network (AUVS VN) and Vice Chairman of the Low-Altitude Economy Alliance of Vietnam (LAEP).

Cooperation signing ceremony between the Vietnam Aviation Academy and Saolatek Company.

Founder Tuan Tran presented forward-looking industry data, highlighting projections that the global low-altitude economy could reach approximately $9 trillion by 2050—spanning smart agriculture, energy infrastructure surveillance, logistics delivery, search and rescue, to tourism and national defense.

The inspiration, however, lay not merely in macroeconomic figures, but in how a young founder journeyed from an individual concept to co-founding a network uniting over 100 domestic and global entities—ranging from industry leaders like FPT, VinaCapital, and Phenikaa to VAA itself. He was candid about a path filled with trials and setbacks, leaving students with a straightforward takeaway: when you take action, the failure rate may be high, but when you do nothing, your chance of success is guaranteed at 0%.

The signing represented far more than a formal partnership document. It served as a binding commitment ensuring VAA students now gain a field-tested companion—an enterprise ready to open laboratories, assign real-world industry problems, and unlock direct career opportunities within an emerging high-tech frontier in Vietnam.

3. Taking Flight: A VAA Student’s Success Story

While Assoc. Prof. Dr. Tran Hoai An outlined the policy framework and Founder Tuan Tran detailed market dynamics, the presentation by student Nguyen Van Quy from the Faculty of Information Technology, member of the VAA UAV Club, offered vivid proof that the gap between these perspectives can be bridged by a student right on campus.

Student representative Nguyen Van Quy (Faculty of Information Technology), member of the VAA UAV Club, brings a hands-on youth perspective on campus research and innovation.

Quy did not begin with an extensive background in aerospace engineering or electronics; as an Information Technology student, he entered the UAV field entirely driven by self-taught passion. His core venture centers on a flight controller named FC ESP32, designed as an accessible educational kit enabling beginners to grasp fundamental flight control programming principles before advancing to complex platforms such as PX4 or ArduPilot. This product targets educational advancement directly, fostering the development of flight control engineering talent right in Vietnam.

His journey began in 2024 with a Creative Technology Award at his first UAV Contest, advanced through systematic product refinement in 2025 where he won the Academy-level UAV Championship, and culminated in representing Vietnam internationally to secure Second Prize at a UAV competition in the Czech Republic. In 2026, Quy successfully defended his VAA UAV Championship title and earned another runner-up finish at an external contest. To date, his platform serves over 70 commercial clients and 30 trainees across diverse domestic universities—a modest figure, yet solid validation that this is no longer an academic exercise, but a viable market product.

Student Nguyen Van Quy (Faculty of Information Technology), member of the VAA UAV Club, participates in a UAV competition in the Czech Republic.

Quy did not shy away from sharing his hurdles: learning from scratch without specialized mentors, malfunctioning circuits causing test crashes requiring full rebuilds, securing initial clients without brand recognition, and navigating testing regulations for unmanned aircraft. Yet through these trials, Quy’s journey stands as tangible evidence of the “risk tolerance” spirit championed by Resolution 57—realized not merely at the national policy level, but inside an Academy lab.

Three narratives share one unbroken thread: policy has opened the horizon, enterprise has opened the door to collaboration, and a student has proved that this door can be stepped through with one’s own hands.

For students of the Vietnam Aviation Academy, this is not merely a slogan about unmanned flight. It serves as an enduring reminder: the journey of innovation does not require a flawless lab or boundless capital to begin—it starts with an idea daring enough to be tested right inside the classroom.

KHCN&HTQT