Press Release: Aviation and Aerospace University, Bangladesh (AAUB)

Release Date: 06 April 2025                Contact: Director, PR&I
Place: AAUB, Dhaka Campus              Mob: 01769995071
Email: pr&i@bsmraau.gov.bd
 

AAUB Set to Represent Bangladesh at Prestigious American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) Design-Build-Fly Competition in the USA

Aviation and Aerospace University, Bangladesh is proudly participating in the AIAA Design-Build-Fly (DBF) Competition 2025, one of the most prestigious global contests in unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) designing. Organized annually by the AIAA, the event challenges university students from around the world to design, build and demonstrate innovative UAVs that solve complex real-world missions.

This year’s competition will be held from 10 to 13 April 2025 in Tucson, Arizona, USA. Representing Bangladesh, a 12 members team from AAUB will travel to the United States on 07 April 2025, led by one Faculty member Group Captain Dr. Saifur Rahman Bakaul. The team will carry with them two custom-designed and self-manufactured UAVs, which have already demonstrated outstanding performance during flight tests.

Notably, the AAUB design ranked ahead of 91 designs from other international universities out of the 168 that entered the initial design phase which is an impressive achievement for a newly established university. This year’s mission posed a unique and highly challenging task of designing a UAV capable of carrying both internal and external payloads along with air launching an unpowered glider. Additionally, the glider must autonomously perform a set of manoeuvres and land precisely at designated GPS coordinates.

The UAVs’ designed by AAUB have already completed 21 successful practice flights within Bangladesh. A major highlight was the flight demonstration on 25 February 2025 observed by Air Chief Marshal Hasan Mahmood Khan, Chief of Air Staff, Bangladesh Air Force. He lauded the aircraft's stability and the team’s engineering excellence. This ambitious project was made possible through the strong support of AAUB’s Vice Chancellor, Air Vice Marshal A K M Manirul Bahar, whose vision and patronage enabled the students to reach this global stage. Before leaving the country for AIAA competition in USA, the team leader expressed great confidence in the team's performance:

“Our students have displayed exceptional dedication, technical prowess, and teamwork. We are proud to carry the flag of Bangladesh into this world-class competition.”

The journey of DBF team of AAUB marks a significant milestone in Bangladesh’s growing footprint in aviation and aerospace sector.