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Diseases transmitted by the mosquito Aedes aegypti, such as dengue, chikungunya and Zika, affect millions of people in tropical and subtropical regions of the world. The sterile insect technique (SIT) is a safe and environmentally benign method of population suppression that could be applied to reduce mosquito-transmitted disease. SIT involves the release of large numbers of sterile male insects that then compete with wild males in mating with females. The females that mate with sterile males do not produce viable offspring. To test this technique within a pilot-scale trial in a village in southern Mexico, we compared two methods for the weekly release of large numbers (approximately 85,000 males/week) of sterile males that were marked with colored powders for later identification. The number of sterile males captured in traps placed in and around houses was higher (average 5.1 males/trap/week) for sterile males released at ground level by technicians walking through the streets of the village. In contrast, traps captured an average of 2.6 males/trap/week when males were released from a small drone aircraft that flew over the village. The males released from the drone may have suffered from chilling, compaction and physical injury during the release procedure. However, the use of the drone resulted in a less aggregated distribution, was markedly quicker, released males over a larger area and required fewer technicians than ground-based releases. Some village residents also reported discomfort from the presence of large numbers of male mosquitoes when released at ground level. Future studies should focus …