URCAD Sneak Peek: Aircrafts designed and built by UMBC Undergrads

Tue, 14 Apr 2026 09:21:11 -0400

Aircrafts by the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics chapter at UMBC, Design, Build, Fly (DBF) and Student Unmanned Aerial Systems (SUAS) teams

Presenters: Shrikant Bhatnagar, Kalel Kai, Ben Bazarsuren, Daniel Shin, Jonah Malcom, Austin Wagener, Nebiyu Mammo, Murali Indukuri, William Vandenberg

Mentor: Joseph Washington, Mechanical Engineering

Students will display the prototypes of their aircafts on the RAC track throughout the day.

The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics chapter at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County was created to address the absence of a formal aerospace engineering program on campus. Without dedicated coursework in aeronautics, many students had limited ways to explore a field that plays a central role in transportation and national security, and engage in fascinating research. In response, the chapter built an experiential pathway into aerospace through student-led competition teams. At the core of this effort were the Design, Build, Fly (DBF) and Student Unmanned Aerial Systems (SUAS) teams, where students took ownership of the full engineering lifecycle. From early design concepts to manufacturing, systems integration, and flight testing, members engaged in the development of unmanned aerial vehicles for international competitions. Students experienced aerospace theory through processes that mirror those used in professional aerospace development. Members strengthened not only their technical abilities, but also their capacity for teamwork, documentation, and leadership under real constraints. Over time, this approach positioned UMBC’s teams as the leading undergraduate-led aerospace competition groups in Maryland, demonstrating how experiential learning can meaningfully expand access to aerospace education.

This work was funded by UMBC SGA, UMBC Mechanical Engineering Department, UMBC COEIT, Northrup Grumman Corporation.

URCAD is Wednesday, April 22 in the RAC:

URCAD.umbc.edu