2014-2015 AIAA Foundation

Graduate Team Aircraft

Design Competition
VSTOL Air Taxi

I.

5. Each proposal should be no more than

100 double-spaced pages (including
graphs, drawings, photographs, and
appendices) if it were to be printed on
8.5 x 11.0 paper, and the font should be
no smaller than 10 pt. Times New
Roman. Up to five of the 100 pages may
be foldouts (11 x 17 max).

Rules General

1. All AIAA Student Members are eligible

and encouraged to participate.
2. Students may NOT participate on more
than one team in any one design
competition category. However, a student
may participate in multiple design
categories.
For example, a student MAY participate
in both the Undergraduate Team Aircraft
competition and the Undergraduate Team
Space Transportation competition; but
that student may NOT participate on two
teams in the Undergraduate Team Space
Transportation competition.
3. Students must submit their final report
via email to AIAA Student Programs
(Rachel Andino, rachela@aiaa.org). It is
the teams responsibility to ensure
delivery of the final report to AIAA. We
recommend utilizing the return receipt
option for validation.
4. A Signature page must be included in
the report and indicate all participants,
including faculty and project advisors,
along with students AIAA member
numbers and signatures. Designs that
are submitted must be the work of the
students, but guidance may come from
the Faculty/Project Advisor and should be
accurately acknowledged.

6. Design projects that are used as part of

an organized classroom requirement are
eligible and encouraged for competition.
7. The prizes shall be: First place-$500;
Second place-$250; Third place-$125
(US dollars). Certificates will be
presented to the winning design team or
individual for display at their university
and a certificate will also be presented to
each team member and the faculty/project
advisor. One representative from the first
place design team may be asked to
present a summary paper at an AIAA
Conference.
If a presentation is to be made,
reasonable airfare and lodging will be
defrayed by the AIAA Foundation for
the team representative.
8. More than one design may be submitted
from students at any one school, but only
one design per team may be submitted.
9. If a design group withdraws their project
from the competition, the team leader
must notify AIAA Headquarters
immediately.
10. Team competitions will be groups of not
more than ten AIAA Student Members
per entry. Individual competitions will
consist of only 1 or 2 AIAA Student
Member per entry.
Page 1 of 8

II.

before the date specified above for the

Receipt of Proposal (Item B).

Copyright

All submissions to the competition shall be

the original work of the team members.
Any submission that does not contain a
copyright notice shall become the property
of AIAA. A team desiring to maintain
copyright ownership may so indicate on the
signature page but nevertheless, by
submitting a proposal, grants an irrevocable
license to AIAA to copy, display, publish,
and distribute the work and to use it for all
of AIAAs current and future print and
electronic uses (e.g. Copyright 20__ by
_____. Published by the American Institute
of Aeronautics and Astronautics, Inc., with
permission.).
Any submission purporting to limit or deny
AIAA licensure (or copyright) will not be
eligible for prizes.

III.

Schedule and
Sequences

Activity

Significant activities, dates, and addresses

for submission of proposal and related
materials are as follows:
A. Letter of Intent 31 January 2015
B. Proposal
delivered
to
AIAA
Headquarters 8 June 2015
C. Announcement of Winners August
2015
Groups intending to submit a proposal must
submit a Letter of Intent (Item A), with a
maximum length of one page to be received
with the attached form on or before the date
specified above. LOI must be emailed to
Rachel Andino (rachela@aiaa.org).

IV.

Proposal Requirements

The technical proposal is the most important

factor in the award of a contract. It should be
specific and complete. While it is realized
that all of the technical factors cannot be
included in advance, the following should be
included and keyed accordingly:
1. Demonstrate a thorough understanding
of the Request for Proposal (RFP)
requirements.
2. Describe the proposed technical
approaches to comply with each of the
requirements specified in the RFP,
including phasing of tasks. Legibility,
clarity, and completeness of the
technical approach are primary factors in
evaluation of the proposals.
3. Particular emphasis should be directed at
identification of critical, technical
problem areas. Descriptions, sketches,
drawings, systems analysis, method of
attack, and discussions of new
techniques should be presented in
sufficient detail to permit engineering
evaluation of the proposal. Exceptions to
proposed technical requirements should
be identified and explained.
4. Include tradeoff studies performed to
arrive at the final design.
5. Provide a description of automated
design tools used to develop the design.

The email containing the finished proposal

must be received at the same address on or
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V.

Basis for Judging

1. Technical Content (35 points)

This concerns the correctness of theory,
validity of reasoning used, apparent
understanding and grasp of the subject,
etc. are all major factors considered and
a reasonably accurate evaluation of these
factors presented?
2. Organization and Presentation (20
points)
The description of the design as an
instrument of communication is a strong
factor on judging. Organization of
written design, clarity, and inclusion of
pertinent information are major factors.
3. Originality (20 points)
The design proposal should avoid
standard textbook information, and
should show the independence of
thinking or a fresh approach to the
project. Does the method and treatment
of the problem show imagination? Does
the method show an adaptation or
creation of automated design tools?
4. Practical Application and Feasibility (25
points)
The proposal should present conclusions
or recommendations that are feasible and
practical, and not merely lead the
evaluators into further difficult or
insolvable problems.

VI.

Request for Proposal

VSTOL Air Taxi

1. Opportunity Description
Considering the extensive amount of time
people in metropolitan areas spend
commuting to and from work each day, is

there a solution using an aircraft to improve

the quality of life of the US population?
Specifically for example the New York and
San Francisco metropolitan areas, there is
significant congestion on roadways due to
geographic bottlenecks. Many of these
bottlenecks are cause by real estate
limitations preventing the construction of
more roads and by bridges and tunnels
required to cross water. Rail solutions allow
greater capacity, but the extensive
infrastructure cost prevents these systems
from becoming ubiquitous. Aviation is not
constrained in the same way as surface
transportation systems.
This design challenge is to propose the
design of an air taxi system that must
operate out of confined urban areas
requiring vertical and short takeoff and
landing capability. To respond to this
request for proposal successfully, teams
must also develop an operations model of
the air taxi corporation and develop cost and
revenue models for the corporation in
addition to designing the VSTOL aircraft.
Considering potential challenges to
certification of an autonomously operating
aircraft, teams may assume that the VSTOL
air taxi aircraft will fall under Part 135
(single pilot, max of 9 passengers); however,
efforts to incorporate aspects of autonomy to
improve safety and cost of operations are
encouraged.
In addition to aircraft design, the student
team will have to consider the business plan
to make an economically viable system.
This study will require optimization of their
aircrafts requirements along with the
systems business model. Teams shall
develop their own cost and revenue
assumptions and passenger/range demand
models or use appropriate existing models
for optimization of the Air Taxi System.
Teams will have to ideate a solution that is
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of better value than future solutions of

automobiles, rail and airline service. Teams
should also make use of technology that will
be available in 2020. High performance
electric motors and batteries should be part
of this trade study.
2. Mission Requirements
Aircraft Capacity
This air taxi system shall have a maximum
passenger capacity of 9 passengers in a
single-class configuration with a 31-inch
seat pitch. For this study, assume that a
passenger with baggage weighs 225 lb (102
kg mass).
Design Mission Range and Payload
The aircraft payload/range requirements are
to be determined by the teams business
model. The business model should be
focused on a single metropolitan area. Select
New York or San Francisco for your study.
The team needs to document current
infrastructure in place and infrastructure that
will be added to meet their business model.
For example, in downtown locations rooftop
helipads could be utilized, or barges will be
installed along the waterfront to enable 500
ft short takeoff and landing (STOL)
operations or 2,000 ft runways in suburb
regions. Teams should consider a vehicle
design that can perform vertical takeoff and
landing (VTOL) operations from helipads
and STOL to conventional takeoff and
landing (CTOL) operations for missions
requiring greater payload/range. For the
purposes of uniformity assume, FAA Part
135 VFR Helicopter Reserve Requirements:
No person may begin a flight operation in a
helicopter under VFR unless, considering
wind and forecast weather conditions, it has
enough fuel to fly to the first point of
intended landing and, assuming normal
cruising fuel consumption, to fly after that
for at least 20 minutes. Note that it is

appropriate to substitute the word energy

for fuel in this study.
For the purposes of this study, teams should
assume that the same corporation
manufactures the aircraft and operates the
air taxi service in a vertically integrated
organization. Following this assumption,
teams should focus on the design of only
one aircraft type for this study; in other
words, a team cannot design one aircraft to
use helipads and a separate aircraft to use
the 2,000-ft runways. This represents the
notion that the corporation cannot conduct
simultaneous design, test, evaluation,
certification of two different new aircraft at
the same time. Ideally, the vehicle could
meet the break-even financial goals using all
three types of infrastructure (perhaps at
different design or different takeoff weights)
with concomitant changes in payload/range
capability. However, it is acceptable to
design a vehicle that utilizes only one or two
types of available takeoff/landing
infrastructure, if that better supports the
break-even financial goals.
Takeoff and Landing
The air taxi system is expected to operate in
metropolitan areas. Only consider the three
infrastructure options for takeoff and
landing. The first is heliports, which allow
zero ground roll for takeoff or landing. The
second is waterfront barges that would be
compromised of three 200-ft long barges
connected end to end. The vehicle must have
a ground roll of less than 500 ft at its current
weight for takeoff and landing to be allowed
to utilize the facility. The third is a
conventional runway. The vehicle must
have a ground roll of less than 2,000 ft and
clear a 50-ft obstacle in 2,500 ft at its current
weight for takeoff and landing to utilize the
facility. Assume the maximum capacity of
each of these facilities is one operation
(takeoff or landing) per minute.
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Cruise Speed and Altitude

The cruise speed and altitude of the air taxi
system should be selected as needed to best
meet the business model. Consider
minimizing total block speed and proximity
to the residential and commercial areas in
order to enable the passenger to complete
their daily commute in less time than other
transportation options.
Other Design Requirements
Cost
Economics is prime objective for this study.
Specifically, minimizing the number of
years to break even is the objective function.
Assume the aircraft manufacturer and the air
taxi operator is a vertically integrated
corporation; i.e., there is no need to
bookkeep the accounting interface between
the aircraft manufacturer and the air taxi
operator. The calculation of years to breakeven needs to include the following items:
infrastructure build cost, aircraft
development & acquisition cost, aircraft
operating cost, revenue generated.
Passenger Comfort / Acceptance
The air taxi system shall provide a jet-like
experience for the passengers. The interior
cabin noise levels shall be less than that of
currently available transport aircraft.
Tradeoffs of Interest
An operations model of the air taxi
corporation with the cost and revenue model
must be developed. Using this operations
model, teams should clearly present plots of
tradeoffs of vehicle configurations,
propulsion systems, aircraft performance
requirements (range, cruise speed, cruise
altitude, type of ground facility it operates
from), passenger seat count, aircraft fleet
size, and locations for infrastructure options
for the air taxi system concept in order to

minimize the years to break even for the

corporation.
Entry into Service and Design Lifetime
The aircraft shall enter into service in 2020.
It shall have a design lifetime of no less than
30 years.
Powerplant:
The proposed air taxi system should include
an advanced performance powerplants,
electric motors/generators and battery
models. The team should develop their own
models consistent with technology that will
be available in 2020.
If utilizing a propeller or rotor, the team
shall design to an appropriate level for use in
conceptual design. The features and
efficiency should be included in the data
documentation.
Design Data Requirements
The technical proposal shall present the
design of the air taxi system clearly and
concisely; the proposal shall cover all
relevant aspects, features, and disciplines.
Pertinent analyses and studies supporting
design choices shall appear in sufficient
detail.
A full description of the air taxi system is
expected along with performance
capabilities and operational limits. These
include, at a minimum:
1. Vehicle weight statement; vehicle
center-of-gravity envelope reflecting
relevant payloads and fuel allocation.
2. Materials selection for main
structural groups and general
structural design, including layout of
primary airframe structure.

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3. A V-n diagram for the vehicle with

identification of necessary air vehicle
velocities and design load factors.
4. Complete geometric description,
including clearances, control
surfaces, and internal arrangement of
the vehicle illustrating sufficient
volume for all necessary components
and systems. The proposal should
contain a Layout of Passenger
Accommodations (LOPA) along
with normal and emergency
entrances and exits. Scaled threeviews and 3-D model imagery of
appropriate quality are expected.
5. A discussion of the cruise speed and
altitude trades and justification of the
values chosen for development of the
concept.
6. A description of the design
mission(s) selected for the proposed
aircraft concept.
7. Important aerodynamic
characteristics and vehicle
performance descriptions for key
mission segments during the design
mission (this includes, but is not
limited to: L/D, velocity, rate-ofclimb, duration, fuel/energy
consumption, etc.).
8. Power plant description and
characterization of propulsion
system and performance.
9. Discussion of equipment,
technologies and / or concepts to
improve passenger experience and
acceptance of the air taxi system
(this may include, but is not limited
to: approaches to reduce cabin noise,
approaches to improve aircraft ride

quality, approaches to improve

convenience, approaches to decrease
manufacturing and operating costs)
10. Discussion of environmental impact
of the aircraft. In addition to fuel
consumption and the directly related
carbon dioxide emissions measured
using the operating mission, this
shall also include airport and
neighborhood noise and other
emissions (such as NOx, unburned
hydrocarbons, and soot). The
discussion should also consider post
service life salvage and recycling of
airframe materials and major
subsystem components.
11. Performance flight envelope, takeoff
and landing performance
12. Summary of the corporation cost and
revenue estimate analysis, with clear
identification of main cost groups
and drivers
Procured Data
Make the following assumptions for the
study:
Helipad costs $10 million to install
Waterfront Barge costs $20 million
to install
Conventional runway costs $60
million to install-Aircraft
development cost is $5,000 per
pound of max takeoff weight
Aircraft operating cost without
acquisition and fuel/energy costs is
$100/hr+$25/hr/pax
Aircraft production cost is $500 per
pound of max takeoff weight
o Determine the aircraft fleet
size based on your operations
model.
Page 6 of 8

Jet fuel cost $5/gallon

92 octane gasoline cost $4/gallon
o This study does not use
100LL aviation gasoline
because it is the prime source
of lead pollution in the
atmosphere. Therefore, there
is significant pressure to stop
using 100LL. Assume a new
design motor is capable of
burning 92 octane automotive
gas.
Electricity cost $0.10/kilowatt-hour
Revenue generated is $0.50 /
passenger-mile
Estimate how many passengers with
travel through the facility as a
function of surrounding population
density and proximity to intended
destinations around the city. List
your assumptions of your estimate.

Proposal Requirements
The proposal response will include trade
documentation on the three major aspects of
the design development, a) the aircraft
concept selection trades, b) the operations
model of the air taxi corporation, and c), the
cost and revenue model of the corporation.
A. The team is to develop and present
the aircraft concepts considered
leading to the down select of their

preferred concept and operations

model. The methods and rationale
used for the down select shall be
presented. At a minimum, a
qualitative assessment of strengths
and weaknesses of the alternatives
shall be given, discussing merits,
leading to a justification as to why
the preferred concept and operations
model was the best proposal
response. Quantitative justification
of why the selected proposal is the
best at meeting the proposal
measures of merit(s) will strengthen
the proposal.
B. In addition, the submittal shall
include the major trade studies
conducted justifying the
optimization, sizing, architectural
arrangement and integration,
operations model, and corporation
cost and revenue of the specifically
selected proposal concept.
Quantitative data shall be presented
showing why their concept works
and is the preferred design
compromise that best achieves the
RFP requirements and objectives.

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Intent Form
AIAA
Graduate Team Aircraft Design Competition
Request for Proposal: VSTOL Air Taxi
Title of Design Proposal: _________________________________________________________
Name of School: ________________________________________________________________
Designers Name

AIAA Member #

Graduation Date

Degree

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Team Leader

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Team Leader E-mail

In order to be eligible for the 2014/2015 AIAA Foundation Undergraduate Team Space Transportation Design Competition,
you must complete this form and return it to AIAA Student Programs before 31 Jan 2015, at AIAA Headquarters to satisfy
Section III, Schedule and Activity Sequences of the competition. For any nonmember listed above, a student member
application and member dues payment should also be included with this form.

Signature of Faculty Advisor

Signature of Project Advisor

Date

Faculty Advisor Printed

Project Advisor Printed

Date

Faculty Advisor Email

Project Advisor Email

Page 8 of 8
Please include a short abstract of your proposal response on a separate sheet.