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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: DUANE HYLAND
(AIAA Communciations 2008–2017)
703.264.7558
duaneh@aiaa.org

17th Annual Event Drew 59 Teams from 25 States and 14 Foreign Nations

April 24, 2013 – Reston, Va. – The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) Foundation congratulates the winning teams in the 2012–2013 Cessna Aircraft Company/Raytheon Missile Systems/ AIAA Foundation Student Design/Build/Fly (DBF) Competition, held April 19–21 at the Tucson International Modelplex Park Association (TIMPA) Field, Tucson, Ariz.

AIAA Executive Director Sandra H. Magnus attended the competition to present the awards to the winning teams. The $2,500 first-place award was won by the team from the University of California – Irvine, Irvine, Calif. The team from San Diego State University, San Diego, Calif., received the $1,500 second-place prize. The team from Rensselaer Polytechnic University, Troy, N.Y., received the $1,000 third-place prize.

Now in its 17th year, the Design/Build/Fly Competition encourages and recognizes excellence in aerospace engineering skills at the undergraduate and graduate levels, by challenging teams of undergraduate and graduate students to design and fabricate a radio-controlled aircraft conforming to strict guidelines, fly it over a defined course while carrying a payload, and land it without damage.

This year’s DBF Competition brought together 595 participants from 59 teams, representing 25 states and 14 foreign nations. Final results of the competition were based on each team’s score on its written design report combined with the scores from its flight opportunities.

Russ Althof, an engineering fellow with Raytheon Missile Systems, and one of the event’s organizers, stated: “Raytheon Missile Systems is proud to sponsor this event along with AIAA and Cessna Aircraft. I would also like to recognize all of the student teams for their effort. Congratulations to the winners as well as all of the students, who have worked so hard to design, build and ultimately fly their airplanes in this competition.”

Final official results and rankings of all participants will be available from the DBF website after final verification and validation. For more information about the AIAA Foundation Design/Build/Fly Competition, visit www.aiaadbf.org.  

MEDIA CONTACT: Duane Hyland, duaneh@aiaa.org or 703.264.7588

The AIAA Foundation seeks to “make it exciting, make it empowering, and make it fun.” That simple, compelling philosophy drives the Foundation’s commitment to math, science, and technology education. The AIAA Foundation offers a wealth of resources to support educators from K–12 through the university level: scholarships, classroom grants, design competitions, and student conferences, improving scientific literacy and advancing the arts and sciences of aerospace. For more information on the AIAA Foundation and its programs for students, teachers, and professionals, please visit www.aiaafoundation.org.

AIAA is the world’s largest technical society dedicated to the global aerospace profession. With more than 35,000 individual members worldwide, and 100 corporate members, AIAA brings together industry, academia, and government to advance engineering and science in aviation, space, and defense. For more information, visit www.aiaa.org.