See Us In Action
Full Steam Ahead
by Matik Heskin / Feb. 17th, 2024
On the heels of one of our most successful prototype plane test flights, we are ecstatic to share that we have come up with quite an impressive flying machine this year. The team has been working day in and day out designing, building, and flying as in just a week our annual Design Report will be due. Immediately following that submission we’ll be building our final plane, preemptively christened the “Odyssey”. We can’t wait to share not only the final product with you, but we hope you’ll follow along with us as we push on towards an amazing competition.
Three Weeks Out
by Dominic Zanti / March 24, 2023
18 days. At the time of this writing, Miner Aviation is 18 days away from driving to Tucson, AZ, and flying our plane at AIAA’s 27th annual Design / Build / Fly competition. From finishing and flying two new aircraft, one being our final, to submitting the design report detailing our approach to this year’s mission, the past three months have been busy. As we head into our spring break at Missouri S&T, now is a good time to reflect on what Miner Aviation has accomplished, as well as what’s coming up.
One Down, Two to Go
by Dominic Zanti / December 20, 2022
Welcome back to another competition season! My name is Dominic Zanti, and as the current CEO of Miner Aviation, I’m both excited to share what our team has been working on these past few months. It’s hard to believe that the fall semester is already coming to a close and we’ll soon be traveling to Tucson, Arizona for AIAA’s Design, Build, Fly competition. With new activities within the team, different rules, and a flight test already under our belts, there’s a lot to update on, so let’s get into it!
Mid-Year Update
by Sam Weiler / January 24, 2021
Hello All! This is Sam Weiler, President of Miner Aviation this year. We’ve made a lot of progress this year already, so I’d like to start by introducing this year’s competition! We are tasked with completing a “Humanitarian Mission”. The mission models a vaccine delivery mission, requiring us to carry syringes and force sensitive ‘vial packages’. As usual, AIAA Design/Build/Fly is broken up into three flight missions, and one ground mission.
Build Season is Here
by Chandler Cairatti / January 19, 2021
Hello all! Miner Aviation has been quietly working away at our goals for this year and made some amazing progress. There is a lot of news such as competition updates, team collaboration shout-outs, new sponsorship announcements, and more to cover so let's get started!
A Unique Start in Unique Times
by clc3qy / October 14, 2020
Welcome to the most unique recent years in Miner Aviation history. The COVID-19 pandemic has not stopped since our competition season closed back in April 2020, and it does not seem to be ending anytime soon. However, a pandemic will not slow down the Miners in Flight. With masks on, standing 6 feet apart, and temperatures checked, the team is back in action and ready to get our hands dirty.
Holding The World On Our Shoulders
by clc3qy / April 26, 2020
Greetings everyone,
For those who may not know, my name is Chandler Cairatti and I am the President of the Missouri S&T Miner Aviation Design Team. I have been with the team since my freshman year here at S&T in 2017 and have had my share of experience in leading this amazing group. Starting as the Public Relations Coordinator for the 2018-2019 season, I took my first steps into being responsible for a large portion of the team and continued into the Vice Presidency for the 2019-2020 season. Now, I have the great honor of serving what has become a second family as its President.
To New Beginnings
by artmx3 / April 5, 2020
Hello all,
As you have probably heard, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the AIAA Design/Build/Fly Competition has been canceled. While this is disappointing to the team, we prioritize everyone’s health and safety over everything else.
The Countdown has Begun!
by clc3qy / February 14, 2020
MINER AVIATION NEEDS YOUR HELP! As you know, our team works hard as a student-led organization to give all of our members a lasting and unique experience in engineering. We take an average of twenty students to competition every year, and believe it or not, that is one of the largest contributions to our budget. As much as we try to fund through school and sponsors, we still need help. That’s why we are launching our crowdfunding campaign. Please help us continue being a strong and successful team. You can help us here at crowdfunding.mst.edu. Even if you aren’t able to support us directly, please share our page with others so that we can reach as many people as possible.
Off to the Races!
by artmx3 / November 23, 2019
The results are in… Miner Aviation is going to competition! Not only that, but we tied for 5th out of 141 proposals!
We haven’t just been sitting around waiting for results, though. MAV has been hard at work testing and optimizing designs to fit this year’s competition demands. At one point the Aerodynamics Subteam tested over 100 configurations in one meeting!
New Year, New Rules!
by artmx3 / October 3, 2019
Hello all! This is Donni Johnson, the new president of Miner Aviation. For the past two years, Annika Highley has written these posts. I hope I can do as well as she did!
After a successful year with AIAA’s Design/Build/Fly (DBF) competition, we are excited and ready for more!
With a new year comes a set of rules and a new leadership team. Let me introduce you to our officers:
Soaring High In Tucson
by Annika Highley / May 2, 2019
It’s been a few weeks since competition wrapped up now, but Miner Aviation is still riding the high of a top 15 finish in the 2019 AIAA Design Build Fly event in Tucson, Arizona. Since this was our first time with the new competition, we weren’t quite sure of what to expect. Overall, we greatly enjoyed a challenging mission with some very impressive competitors.
Counting Down To Competition
by Annika Highley / April 8, 2019
On Wednesday, I wistfully watched the truck carrying our plane and tools drive down the road and begin its journey for Tucson. I wanted to tell the driver to be careful, after all, this was the project that we had been working on all year. My team’s blood, sweat, tears, money, and all of our collective knowledge and experience is wrapped up in that airplane.
Preparing For Takeoff
by Annika Highley / March 17, 2019
With just under a month until competition, Miner Aviation has a successful test flight under our wing! In fact, the team has been so busy getting flying experience under our belt that I’ve lost track of how many test flights we’ve completed! This of course is great news for us as we assess our readiness for competition.
Smoothing Out The Edges
by Annika Highley / January 21, 2019
Ever since the rules for the AIAA Design Build Fly competition were published in September, Miner Aviation has been rising to meet the challenge, putting together the perfect aircraft for the task. There have been a lot of ups and downs since then, but with the help of our leads, teammates, and advisors, we’re coming out on top with a design that’s simple but effective.
