Provided/CUAir

The CUAir team with their aircraft, Aeolus II, at the 2012 Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International's Student Unmanned Air Systems competition.

CUAir, Cornell University's Unmanned Air Systems Team, took second place at the 2012 Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International's Student Unmanned Air Systems competition at Patuxent River Naval Air Station in Lexington Park, Md., June 16.

The 25-member student engineering team designs, builds and flies an unmanned autonomous aircraft capable of autonomous takeoff and landing; waypoint navigation; and surveillance and reconnaissance.

Composed mainly of students from computer science and electrical, mechanical and aerospace engineering, CUAir beat out close to 35 other student teams from around the world who attended the U.S. Navy-sponsored competition.

In addition to their overall runner-up finish, CUAir placed first in mission (flight) performance, sixth in presentation and seventh in journal paper. The competition requires the design, integration and demonstration of a system capable of conducting air operations to include autonomous flight, navigation of a specified course and use of onboard payload sensors.

"We have all worked so hard throughout the last year, and to be recognized in this way for all of our efforts is extremely gratifying," said Matthew Lordahl '12, CUAir team leader. "To see the team and our system come together so nicely at competition is a testament to everyone's hard work."