Cargo Plane

Background

UCI Cargo Plane participates in the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) Aero Design West Competition. This competition provides engineering students exposure to real-life engineering challenges in the aerospace industry. The goal is to create a bush plane design that can operate from short runways while carrying outsized cargo. Students are expected to perform trade studies to find a design solution that will optimally meet the mission requirements. The types of payload these aircraft are required to hold are soccer balls and steel plates. During the competition, teams are expected to load and unload soccer balls and steel plates in under a minute. For this reason, the design should account for easy loading accessibility. These design factors test the team’s ability to exercise time management, stay within budget, and ultimately build a plane to meet the goals of the competition.

In addition to creating a well-engineered plane, the competition stresses the importance of both interpersonal and oral communication skills by dedicating a significant percentage of a team’s score to the design report and oral presentation. The technical design report is a 30-page report in which our team conveys the story of how our aircraft is the most suited design to accomplish the intended mission. The technical presentation is a 10-minute presentation of our trade studies, design challenges, and manufacturing techniques. This is followed by a five minute Q&A by the SAE judges. These sections of the competition give students both technical knowledge and professional presentation skills, which are essential for engineers in the industry.

Our team consists of 24 aerospace, mechanical, and civil engineering students, with grade levels ranging from Freshman to Seniors. Our goal is to win the SAE Aero Design West Competition by designing the "AE-20" to be as light as possible and carry a 20+ lb payload. Our team is currently working on test flights and presentations to prepare for the competition on April 3rd.

Advisor

John C. LaRue (jclarue@uci.edu)

Graduate Advisor

Colin Sledge

Social Media

Follow us on Instagram @uci_cargo_plane

Questions?

Email us: cargoplaneuci@gmail.com