Cargo Plane

Background

UCI Cargo Plane is an undergraduate design project based on the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) Aero Design West Competition. The goal of this project is to design, manufacture, and test an electric RC aircraft with Short Takeoff and Landing (STOL) capabilities. 

Our aircraft is called “Anteater Express-22” and is able to carry one soccer ball and 10 pounds of metal plates within a compact cargo bay.  Our aircraft is a high wing aircraft with a loaded weight of 25.5 pounds where 11 pounds is the cargo weight. The wingspan of the aircraft is 8 feet long and the length of the aircraft is 8.33 ft. The AE-22 cargo plane uses a conventional monoplane design with a focus on weight reduction, ease of manufacturing, and high lift at low airspeeds.    

Our 30-member team has three subteams responsible for specific tasks and responsibilities:

  • Structures
  • Aerodynamics
  • Propulsion/Avionics

Goal 

The goal of this project is to design, manufacture, and test an electric cargo aircraft with Short Takeoff and Landing (STOL) capabilities. 

Objectives

Create a small cargo plane with to fulfill the requirements below:

  • Must have wingspan no longer than 10 feet
  • Must be able to takeoff within 100 feet
  • Must be able to land within 400 feet
  • Must fly a full lap around runway
  • Must not weigh more than 55 pounds
  • Must have a battery power limit of 1 kilo-watt
  • Must not use fiber-reinforced plastics

Team Contacts

Team Email: cargoplaneuci@gmail.com

Faculty Advisor

Prof. John Larue - jclarue@uci.edu 

Project status: 
Active
Department: 
MAE
Term: 
Fall
Winter
Spring
Academic year: 
2021-2022
Fall Poster: 
Winter Poster: 
Author: