Momentum - September 2020 - 9

STUDENT
GENERATION
was incredibly satisfying leading the team to victory. But
seeing the team members grow as engineers and band
together to face adversity was even more satisfying."
Key to Micro Class victory was "a willingness to think
outside of the box and explore novel ideas, paired with a
phenomenal team."
Added Venkatachalam: "The unique planform of the
aircraft, endearingly dubbed 'digital sweep,' and the
20-second assembly where the plane went from inside
a small box to flight-ready status, garnered a lot of
attention from judges and participants alike."
Texas A&M University won the other of the three
Classes, Regular.
"The team is beyond pleased with the end results,"
John Blausen, 2019-2020 and 2020-2021 chief engineer
of the Texas A&M team that goes by the name Farmers
Flight, told MOMENTUM. "First place is something we
had been working towards for years. Our team prioritizes
the SAE competition, so earning the win and reaching
our goal was gratifying for everyone; we couldn't stop
smiling on the long drive back to Texas."

Texas A&M opted for a wing roughly half the specified limit of 120 inches. It was one
of the smallest at SAE Aero Design East and helped the team win first-place overall in
the Regular Class.

"But with perseverance and hard
work, no dream is ever too big."
Gustavo Rosa
"This year," he continued, "we had more failed flight
attempts than successful, many of which ended in
crashes, so it took a tremendous amount of hard work
and long hours in the shop to reach a point of regular
flight success. The competitive drive kept us going, so the
win certainly justified the work that made it possible. We
took a calculated risk with an incredibly small wingspan.
Numerous judges and competing teams expressed doubts
before the mission performance event, so scoring the
most points and proving our design superior to the large
wingspans was the most satisfying part of competition."

SAE AERO DESIGN WEST/VIRTUAL
Gustavo Rosa is an ambitious type. Lucky that is for
RUM-Air, the SAE Aero Design team from the University
of Puerto Rico-Mayaguez.
"After being a part of RUM-Air for four years, during
this year's first meeting, I shared with the team that
my personal objective was to achieve at least six of the
twelve first-place awards typically given at the SAE
Aero Design competition," said Rosa, 2019-2020 team
captain. "At that point, everybody was doubting the
viability of this statement, as we respect and admire
the other universities' potential. Although it seemed a
difficult objective, I never doubted the ability of our team
members. In the end, because of the pandemic, there
were only nine first-place awards given. We captured six
of the nine and earned two second-place awards."

MOMENTUM

2009_SG_4-13.indd 6

Major sections of the University of Puerto Rico-Mayaguez's Micro Class design, which
topped all competitors' entries.

"We dreamt big," Rosa added. "But with perseverance and hard
work, no dream is ever too big."
He noted that because of serious budget constraints, the team
cannot rely on the latest technology, nor advanced facilities, to
gain an edge over competitors. "The team had to invest part of the
funding provided by sponsors towards machinery and manufacturing
tools such as 3D printers, and the repair of an old CNC laser cutting
machine," Rosa recalled for MOMENTUM. "Our biggest key in terms
of technology was adapting our designs to our manufacturing
limitations to properly optimize the material properties and their
designation in critical stress locations while keeping in mind weight
and the project's budget."
The University of British Columbia captured first place in the
Regular Class.

By Patrick Ponticel, MOMENTUM editor

September 2020 9

8/19/20 9:24 AM
Momentum - September 2020

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