Students were required to design build and fly their own aircraft competing against 66 prestigious universities from around the world
Khalifa University announced today that its Design/Build/Fly team placed 7th out of 66 entries at the recent AIAA Cessna/Raytheon Missile Systems Student Design/Build/Fly competition held in Wichita Kansas.
The Khalifa University team was required to design fabricate and demonstrate the flight capabilities of an unmanned electric powered radio controlled aircraft built to meet a specified mission profile. The goal was to balance a design with demonstrated flight handling qualities and practical and affordable manufacturing requirements while providing a high vehicle performance. The teams were graded on the three flight missions and on a design report that documents the design analysis and fabrication of the airplane.
Several other prestigious universities from around the world also participated in the competition with Khalifa University ranking 2nd in the design portion and 7th overall. In addition Khalifa University was the only team to attend from the United Arab Emirates and the Arab world as well as being the only team comprised entirely of undergraduates.
Khalifa University President Dr. Tod Laursen said “It is unusual for teams with relatively little DBF experience to achieve such a high finish in the DBF competition which is quite demanding. I am extremely proud of our students who have worked hard and effectively to achieve this result. What this DBF team has done is an inspiration to all of us at Khalifa University.”
“We are thrilled with our students 7th place finish ” said Dr. Arif Sultan Al Hammadi Executive Vice President. “This was a major international competition and our students excelled in it. This is not just a big win for Khalifa University but a big win for the UAE. This is even more impressive when you consider that unlike other teams ours was comprised entirely of undergraduate students. It just goes to show that they are receiving a high quality of education that can easily be compared to any other worldwide. Khalifa University strives to hire academic leaders in their fields who offer our students a hands on education that prepares them for real world challenges. We are dedicated to achieving the goals set out in the Abu Dhabi 2030 Vision and international recognition like this demonstrates that we are molding the industry leaders of tomorrow.”
Adnan Salem Obaid a student in Khalifa University’s Aerospace Engineering program and the DBF team leader said: “I’m very proud of this achievement because it came after months of continuous hard work. When we traveled to the US and competed against prestigious international universities and achieved the seventh place we reaped the fruits of our labor and we are looking forward to achieving further excellence in the coming years.”
