Olin College of Engineering
Design-Build-Fly Project Team
Welcome to Olin College of Engineering's AIAA Design-Build-Fly Team.
Founded in 2017, we are a team of undergraduate students that develop highly specialized electric RC aircraft for the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics Design-Build-Fly competition. In our first year of competition, we gained recognition as the 11th place finisher internationally in Wichita, Ks, placing 8th the following year in Tucson, Az.
Team members gain experience through a variety of tasks, building skills in mechanical design, composite fabrication, simulation, aerodynamic analysis, actuation, part selection, fabrication, team collaboration, communication, RC flying, and more.
AIAA DBF Competition
"The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics Cessna/Raytheon Missile Systems Student Design-Build-Fly competition provides a real-world aircraft design experience for engineering students by giving them the opportunity to validate their analytic studies
Student teams will design, fabricate, and demonstrate the flight capabilities of an unmanned, electric powered, radio controlled aircraft which can best meet the specified mission profile. The goal is a balanced design possessing good demonstrated flight handling qualities and practical and affordable manufacturing requirements while providing a high vehicle performance."