https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FOChBNAuHE4 : Video of our first flight.
Today we finalized construction of our primary prototype model of our concept aircraft. Using depron to construct the plane was a challenge; our "teardrop"-shaped fuselage is not easily constructed out of depron. To achieve this shape, we combined many geometric shapes that, once sanded down, would resemble a raindrop.
After finishing the fuselage, we added control surfaces to our aircraft. We simply cut out rectangles at the rear of the plane that would act as elevons. We mounted the battery for the plane at the front end of it in a case that gave it extra room to move. We purposefully did this so that just before flight, we could adjust it so that the Center of Gravity would be in the exact middle of the plane (not favoring one side of the plane). We were excited and nervous to test the plane, especially because of the added complexity of the elevons.
Our first test flight was great! Our plane managed to have a smooth, launched takeoff. It was able to pitch and roll effectively and had great maneuverability. When it was time to land the plane, all throttle was pulled back when the aircraft was at about 20 feet. It glided with elegance to the ground and had a smooth landing. Unfortunately, the model was damaged on a later test when it came in contact with a tree when we were testing turning radius (purely our mistake).
Future plans for the week include making a better model of the plane which we will attach the ArduPilot Mega to. We cant wait to see it fly itself and are optimistic about the design of our plane.
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