The General Aviation Manufacturers Association (GAMA) is seeking participants
for the 2019 Aviation Design Challenge, with the goal of promoting Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) in high schools.
“This will be our seventh consecutive year hosting this life-changing competition, and it will be our biggest one yet with our expansion of the school registration cap to 150 slots,” Pete Bunce, GAMA president and CEO, said. “This program is a valuable tool for us to not only help educate the nation’s students about the science of flight and airplane design but also tell them about all the exciting career options that lie ahead for them in the general aviation industry.”
GAMA officials said aviation curriculum and a virtual fly-off would be key to the endeavor, noting registered schools would receive a complimentary Fly to Learn curriculum developed in alignment with national STEM standards, along with free X-Plane software, which is the world’s most comprehensive and powerful flight simulator for personal computers.
Teachers will guide students through the principles of the science of flight and airplane design, completing the curricula in the classroom in six weeks or four weeks through an accelerated program. Students will then applying that knowledge to modify an airplane design and complete a mission in a virtual fly-off using the software.
Judges will score based on the application of what the team learned and performance parameters. The winning team will receive an all-expenses-paid trip to experience general aviation manufacturing firsthand during the summer of 2019.