Disclosed is a fast-response sensor system to measure a fluid vector in a plurality of dimensions. This system, known as ‘MAST’ (for MEMS Anemometry Sensing Tower), utilizes microelectromechanical (MEMS) hot-wire devices to produce a solid-state, lightweight, and robust flow sensor system suitable for, e.g., real-time wind estimation onboard a UAV. The MAST uses three through eighteen polygonally-arranged microscale flow sensors to determine the fluid's vector's direction and magnitude.