AIAA Design/Build/Fly Competition
Calvin Nguyen
Mentor: Robert H. Liebeck
The Design/Build/Fly Competition is an AIAA sponsored annual and international event that allows undergraduate college students to gain hands-on experience. The goal is to design and fabricate a remote-controlled model aircraft to complete assigned missions and fly on a specified flight course while carrying assigned payloads. The payloads for this year are softballs and “bats,” which are actually 30-inch long 2-inch diameter PVC pipes. It was UCI’s sixth year in the competition, and the team learned new ways of manufacturing the aircraft using composite materials. The wings, tails, and landing gear can be fabricated much lighter than with the previous method and still withstand the necessary loads. The data from the test flight can be obtained from a programmable speed controller, which logs current draw, voltage, temperature, rpm, and throttle. The team placed 19th out of 69 teams overall.