Thunderbird was our 2022 aircraft. It had a box wing, chosen to cut wingtip losses and get more efficiency out of a compact airframe.
Design
- The box wing reached a lift-to-drag ratio above 10.
- The payload sits in a 4-litre bay inside the airframe.
- The frame is 3D printed, so we could make and replace sections ourselves.
At the competition
The team won the Media & Engagement Award for its outreach with schools and local students. A technical problem meant Thunderbird didn’t get to fly in time, and we finished 17th of 32.
The mission
That year’s mission was to deliver medicine, supplies or communications equipment autonomously. Thunderbird was built to do it without a runway and without a pilot for take-off and landing.