# Reactive Aerobatic Flight via Reinforcement Learning

arXiv: https://arxiv.org/abs/2505.24396 · HTML: https://mlsanity.com/paper/2505.24396/

## Key facts

- Cited by 5 papers in the map (data through 14 Oct 2026).
- Placed in RL for robot navigation and UAV control, one of 15 directions in Deep reinforcement learning methods.
- Builds on 12 of its 22 references that are in the map.
- First posted on arXiv 30 May 2025.

## Placed in

- Deep reinforcement learning methods / [RL for robot navigation and UAV control](https://mlsanity.com/deeprl/rl-for-robot-navigation-and-uav-control/)

## Builds on (most cited first, 12 of 12)

- [Proximal Policy Optimization Algorithms](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1707.06347/) (2017)
- [Automated Curriculum Learning for Neural Networks](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1704.03003/) (2017)
- [Reverse Curriculum Generation for Reinforcement Learning](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1707.05300/) (2017)
- [Automatic Curriculum Learning For Deep RL: A Short Survey](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2003.04664/) (2020)
- [Learning High-Speed Flight in the Wild](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2110.05113/) (2021)
- [Reaching the Limit in Autonomous Racing: Optimal Control versus Reinforcement Learning](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2310.10943/) (2023)
- [Flightmare: A Flexible Quadrotor Simulator](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2009.00563/) (2020)
- [Deep Drone Acrobatics](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2006.05768/) (2020)
- [Back to Newton's Laws: Learning Vision-based Agile Flight via Differentiable Physics](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2407.10648/) (2024)
- [Model Predictive Contouring Control for Time-Optimal Quadrotor Flight](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2108.13205/) (2021)
- [Whole-Body Control Through Narrow Gaps From Pixels To Action](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2409.00895/) (2024)
- [Trajectory Generation and Tracking Control for Aggressive Tail-Sitter Flights](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2212.11552/) (2022)

## Built on by (most cited first, 5 of 5)

- [NavDreamer: Video Models as Zero-Shot 3D Navigators](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2602.09765/) (2026)
- [High-Speed Vision-Based Flight in Clutter with Safety-Shielded Reinforcement Learning](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2602.08653/) (2026)
- [Multi-Task Reinforcement Learning of Drone Aerobatics by Exploiting Geometric Symmetries](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2602.10997/) (2026)
- [ASTER: Attitude-aware Suspended-payload Quadrotor Traversal via Efficient Reinforcement Learning](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2603.10715/) (2026)
- [ClearNav: Perception-Aligned Quadrotor Flight Using Differential-Physics](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2610.17419/) (2026)

## Abstract (arXiv)

Quadrotors have demonstrated remarkable versatility, yet their full aerobatic potential remains largely untapped due to inherent underactuation and the complexity of aggressive maneuvers. Traditional approaches, separating trajectory optimization and tracking control, suffer from tracking inaccuracies, computational latency, and sensitivity to initial conditions, limiting their effectiveness in dynamic, high-agility scenarios. Inspired by recent breakthroughs in data-driven methods, we propose a reinforcement learning-based framework that directly maps drone states and aerobatic intentions to control commands, eliminating modular separation to enable quadrotors to perform end-to-end policy optimization for extreme aerobatic maneuvers. To ensure efficient and stable training, we introduce an automated curriculum learning strategy that dynamically adjusts aerobatic task difficulty. Enabled by domain randomization for robust zero-shot sim-to-real transfer, our approach is validated in demanding real-world experiments, including the first demonstration of a drone autonomously performing continuous inverted flight while reactively navigating a moving gate, showcasing unprecedented agility.