Speedfest 2018: Black Team
Abstract
For my senior project, I did Speedfest. I was part of the structures team on the Black Team. The mission was to make an airplane fly and drop payloads in a certain target while not being detected by radar. We also had to design the aircraft so that it could fly at 170 knots. To do this, we needed to consider a lot of variables. We needed everything to integrate so, the 4 teams (Aero, Structures, CAD, and Propulsion) had to work together to integrate everything. First we all brainstormed ideas, and after much consideration, we decided to do a simple flying wing type design. We designed it with smooth curvatures and smooth flowing panels to prevent the radar from detecting the plane. The payload droppers were designed as a rotating payload dropper, so the chance of error is slim. My part was structures, so I concentrated on building the aircraft. To do this I had to make molds, laser cut the bulkheads, shower drain the internal structure, and make composite layups with the mold. All in all, this was an extremely enlightening experience. On April 28, we went to competition and got first place against the Orange Team from Oklahoma State, St. Louis University, and the University of Kentucky.