CAL Aerospace SAE

2022 to 2025 · Aero SAE · Structures / landing gear / electrical

Student-led RC aircraft design and competition: design through manufacturing, with national placement at Aero SAE West.

Background

CAL Aerospace SAE is a student-led team in the annual SAE West competition against 75 international teams. Subteams cover design through manufacturing end to end. We placed third nationally at Aero SAE West in April 2025.

Structures lead (2024 to 2025)

I oversaw the design, construction, and assembly of an airplane for the annual SAE competition, ensuring compliance with strict performance and structural integrity standards. By coordinating tasks across subteams, I facilitated collaboration to meet project goals. Using SolidWorks and Ansys FEA, I analyzed and validated designs for the fuselage, tail, and landing gear for strength and efficiency. In addition to my technical contributions, I managed the recruitment and onboarding of new members and organized workshops to enhance the team’s engineering skills for beginners.

Landing gear lead (2023 to 2024)

I led a team of eight Berkeley engineering students to develop and optimize landing gear for an aircraft project. Using SolidWorks and Ansys FEA, we improved landing gear performance by 30%, focusing on compressive strength for high landing forces. I managed timelines, coordinated design efforts, and oversaw prototyping and testing to keep the project on track. We used both additive and subtractive manufacturing methods to create aluminum, 3D printed, and carbon fiber parts, reducing weight and boosting performance. Working with other subteams, I helped ensure all components of the aircraft fit together seamlessly, contributing to the success of the project.

Electrical team (2022 to 2023)

I compiled and analyzed extensive sensor data to simulate varying forces on an aircraft, using MATLAB to correlate motor power with airspeed and validate measured versus calculated thrust. This involved processing over 1,000 lines of data from six sensors to build force models for specific components. I also designed, built, and calibrated an analog airspeed sensor with a pitot tube, integrated on an ESP32 for real-time measurements. This work ensured reliable modeling and validation, contributing to the aircraft’s optimized performance under various operating conditions.