American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics

Every year, the UT Austin Chapter of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics competes in the Aircraft Design Competition. This year, AIAA in cooperation with the Navy, tasked the design competition team with designing, simulating, and presenting a design proposal for the next-generation carrier strike aircraft which would replace the F/A-18 E/F Super Hornet. The design proposal had to meet numerous criteria and constraints as set out in the Request for Proposal such as being compatible with the Navy's CVN-68 and CVN-78 carriers and having a 25 year lifespan. That being said, as the chief engineer tasked with spearheading project development, I quickly identified the primary criteria of the aircraft as it should be carrier capable, maintain a substantial strike and air-to-air ordinance package, and have a 700 nautical mile combat radius, and the primary constraints to be that all subsystems must have a Technology Readiness Level of 6 or higher, the air frame should be operational by 2035, and the components used should be as cost-effective as possible through my assessment of the RFP. 

In terms of design philosophy, I emphasized cost-effectiveness by collaborating with other engineers to select components which performed the best for their relative cost. Additionally, I promoted the concept of low-detectability which lowered the infrared signature and the radar cross-section of the airframe through the use of clever geometry, radar absorbing paint, and exhaust baffles. 

Throughout this project, I served as both the chief engineer and the simulations analyst for the airframe.  Thus, I used Ansys simulations to perform both Finite Element Analysis and Computational Fluid Dynamics on the airframe. Finite Element Analysis was performed on the gear to determine max component deformation and von Mises stress on the gear during challenging carrier landings. As for Computational Fluid Dynamics, this simulation was used to reduce the drag coefficient and improve the airframe during high energy dogfights and maneuvers. 

As for takeaways, this project was instrumental in reinforcing the ideas of collaboration and communication to smash goals and meet deadlines. Work management platforms and clear communication channels were crucial to keep the team in the loop and coordinated towards the project goal. Being the chief engineer as the competition team also made me realize that the necessary choice is rarely the easiest, and that only through innovation and taking the road less traveled can a team truly find success.