FLYLANDERS
Design, Build, Fly!
HISTORY
In the 1990s, NJIT’s aero team was first created by several engineering students interested in the growing aerospace industry. The team continued to compete in SAE Aero Design Competition until 2003 when the team disbanded. The AERO team was revived in 2010 to compete in the competition but became inactive in the following years. Finally, the team re-emerged in 2017 under the name of Flylanders. Since then, Flylanders have continued to compete in the SAE AERO Design Competition, striving to reach a higher potential through continuous improvement.
01
2022-2023
In the 2022-2023 season, the regular class presented substantial changes, requiring significantly larger aircraft for carrying metal weights. The team adeptly addressed these challenges by crafting an 18-foot flying wing in five segments under 48 inches. This innovative approach led to successful participation at Paradise Field in Lakeland, Florida.
02
2021-2022
During the 2021-2022 season, we encountered initial challenges stemming from the limited experience of many members due to the disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. These challenges were overcome quickly and the team then focused on learning from the progress made in past years. This allowed them to improve the design of the previous year. The team traveled to the Thunderbirds field located in Fort Worth, Texas to compete during May 20th-22nd.
03
2020-2021
Due to the pandemic, the team was not allowed to physically participate in the competition this year. This allowed the team to focus more on the overall structure and aerodynamics of the aircraft. The team made significant progress in the design and analysis of the plane, proceeding to carry over this knowledge to the following year.
04
2019-2020
During this season the rules for the Regular class of the competition faced several modifications, the most significant of which pertained to the payload. The payload was altered from tennis balls to soccer balls. The team overcame these challenges and competed in Lakeland, Florida March 6th to the 8th.
05
2018-2019
The team competed in Fort Worth, Texas from March 8th-10th. Using the knowledge acquired from the previous year, the team made several overall design changes to the aircraft.
06
2017-2018
As a newly re-established organization, the team faced many struggles. The team pushed past all those issues and competed in the SAE competition in Lakeland, Florida from March 9th-11th, 2018.