Aerospace Engineering [Archive]

bp_ffei

28-04-2005, 03:04 AM

I was wondering why there isn't such a thread in this Sig forum.

Anyway, I am already offered to study Aerospace Engineering in Nanyang Technological University (NTU), Singapore, but I'm not sure if I really want to go there instead of National Univeristy of Singapore (NUS). Btw, NUS does not offer Aerospace Engineering but both universities have an aerospace specialisation under Mechanical Engineering. I've have chosen Material Science and Engineering for NUS.

What do you think of the future prospects of aerospace engineering? I'm a bit worried because it is rather specialised and even from the first year our syllabus is not the same with other engineering courses. I'm also worried that taking up this course would render me less versatile, lets say compared to a mechanical engineering graduate, when something pops up that makes it hard to find a job. Concerning interest, I am rather interested in this field of study so I have no problems for that. Any other things that I'll have to consider?

Oh, and another thing is, if I take up this course in NTU, I'll be in the first batch of graduates. What are the pros and cons of this?

gonjeng

28-04-2005, 10:10 AM

I was wondering why there isn't such a thread in this Sig forum.

err... maybe there arent that many aerospace students who joins this sig? dunno...

i cant comment much on the choice of univ's, since i dont know any of them (apart from name and where they are at). but if you have the luxury to go and visit the U, i would encourage you to do so. there are a few things you wanna look for, such as the facilities available (com labs, softwares available, hands-on opportunity, etc.), existing research, resources (aerospace related books in the library), the aerospace 'community', etc. that will give you a better view on which U is better on aerospace eng.

as far as the comparison with mechanical engineering students, i would say that the courses, although on paper they are different, theoretically speaking they are more or less the same. you will learn the same theory what others learn, but the only difference is on the application and examples given, which will be focused on aerospace stuff. maybe during your late third year and fourth year , the courses offered will be different, depending on your area of specialty. nevertheless, for an aerospace eng to move to mechanical is very easy and most employers dont care anyway, as long as you know the concepts :) but for a mechanical to get into aerospace... hmm, im kinda sceptical on that since the student wasnt exposed to the 'environment'...

and as for the field of work... heh, in malaysia, there are some aerospace related jobs available but the only problem here is it is very limited and not open to public. it seems that the aerospace community in malaysia is somewhat close - any news, updates, openings, etc are spread between themselves and very rarely it is disclosed to the public... kire kinda conservative laa... and im talking more on r&d work. if maintenance is the topic at hand, its a hold different topic since there are almost no secret on mas nor airasia :)

what to consider? my take is your interest, since thats what drives me anyway :) plus it seems that you have 4-5 more years to go before worrying about jobs... so at least be optimistic on this and that will also help you going...

about being the first batch. wow, youll be the pioneer but do know that being pioneer means you are being their gunnea-pig (spelling betul ke?) as well. plus, as it may have occured in your mind that no new things came out as sth perfect...

weich

28-04-2005, 04:03 PM

hi,

true that not many M'sians are doing this course...think it's only me & gonjeng in this forum =)

I think S'pore's engineering courses are really quite good...and they have the industry to back it up....e.g. ST-Aero is pretty good & they have close links with the Israel defence industry...

...not too sure about M'sia, the only name I've heard of is Excelnet & CTRM

btw speaking from my university's point of view, undergraduate courses in aero eng is something like doing mechanical engineering in the 1st 2 years except that we don't spend alot of time on the manufacturing standards, workshop time, etc but more focus on fluid dynamics and aircraft structures. I'm finding it quite difficult sometimes 'cos some subjects that I learn in my 1st year is learnt by a 2rd year Mech Eng student...and we have more classes & projects than them.

Lots of Mathematics in it - a lot on calculus, complex nos, matrices. In your final 2 years, there'll be options for you to take & this will lead you to your specialisation like Structures/Aerodynamics/Materials/Control Systems...

...basically, i think it's one of the tougher courses to take so just be prepared for it.

gonjeng

28-04-2005, 04:17 PM

excelnet and ctrm have too many politics in it, hence you need good networking to get in. well unless none of the ppl they know can fill in the position, then you may get in. besides that, mas has a so-called r&d department - the research/investigation done is mainly on the engines (increase performance, trobleshooting, etc.) and i was told that they 'played' around with winglets as well. sth like an adds-on to make it better - and from my resources, the design was successful that boeing acknowledged it.

the coursework you mentioned is somewhat similar to what i went through. i bet its about the same for everybody :) apparent different can only be seen once you get into your third and fourth year.

and mathematics? muahaha... shouldnt that be expected if you want to take engineering courses? but then, it also depends on your prof, whether he/she is more on the theories or application. i like the later, since it involves less derivation (whats the point of deriving what others have derived?) but more on real application...

weich

28-04-2005, 08:42 PM

so what are the options in Malaysia then?

I was recommended to enquire about opportunities in Aeronimbus, an Indo-Malaysian company...but can't find much info on the company.

bp_ffei

28-04-2005, 10:42 PM

Thanks to all of you who posted. Gives me a clearer insight to the course and future prospects.

I was thinking of working in Singapore after I graduate anyway, especially if I'm tied down by the 3-years bond for Tuition Grant (some type of subsidy). The people from the Economic Development Board (EDB) of Singapore said they needed 150 Aerospace Engineers a year to sustain their operations, but NTU started off with only 60 places (however, I heard they allowed 120 people).

Um... anyone knows if the pay is good? :oops:

weich

29-04-2005, 12:45 AM

150 aerospace engineers a year? That's quite a lot...which are the companies offering places? Graduating in 1.5 years time, need a job hehe =)

also, for those aspiring to be aerospace/aeronautical engineers, students or are just aerospace enthusiast, feel free to join this group I've just setup called Aerospace Malaysia (Aero-M) - aimed at linking all the aerospace professionals & students in Malaysia:

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aerom/join/

gonjeng

03-05-2005, 11:19 AM

heh weich, so you are the 'kepala' of aero-m... i'm shazlan :) anyhow, for more info on the aero. companies in mesia, refer to nadia's reply in the yahoogroups. anyhow, below are some other company listing i got from her:

1. Metal Manufacturing
- SME Aerospace, Sg Buloh

2. Composite manufacturing
- CTRM (ACT/ Eagle - they are one group), Melacca
- Asian Composite Manufacturing, ACM (boeing wing panels), Kedah

3. Design/ R&D
- Excelnet, Cyberjaya
- Design Center, SME Aviation

4. Simulator/Software
- Sapura Technology; Hawk Mk208 simulator
- Ikramatic Systems; PC7 & Eurocopter AS355N simulator
- Zetro Aerospace

5. Maintenance
- Airod; C130
- ATSC; MiG29N
- Airod Turbopower; Rolls Royce T56/501 Engine MRO
- Airod Alenia
- SME Aviation; MD3 & Mi-171
All of the above comes under one group
- MAS

bp_ffei... i am thinking of trying to work for a few years (3-5 years maybe) in singapore as well... do you have any links to give a start? few names of companies maybe? also, does a-star has any project related to aerospace?

bp_ffei

03-05-2005, 01:09 PM

I don't think A*Star has any projects related to aerospace. Their website is http://www.a-star.edu.sg/astar/index.do They mostly do research on bio- and nano- stuff.

Concerning aerospace companies in Singapore... I was told by an NTU prof that they have cooperations with Rolls-Royce, General Electric, and Pratt & Whitney.

On the brochure they gave us a sample of potential employers. These include (in addition to what I've already mentioned):

- Messier-Dowly, Messier Services, Messier-Bugatti, Turbomeca, Labinal (all under Snecma Group)
- The Nordam Group
- Liebherr
- Smiths Industries Aerospace
- Boeing
- Honeywell
- Goodrich
- Thales
- Hamilton Sundstrand
- Singapore Technologies Aerospace
- Telair International
- EADS Airbus
- Airfoil Technologies International (ATI)
- Singapore Airlines
- Kidde
- SALE
- Bae Systems
- Rockwell Collins
- Windsor Airmotive
- Eurocopter

However, I am not sure if all these companies have operations in Singapore... I guess you'll just have to see which one you're interested in and check out their website to see if they have operations in Singapore...

Anyway, gonjeng, why are you thinking of working in Singapore?

gonjeng

03-05-2005, 01:46 PM

err... why? why not? hehehe...

some of the reasons are:

1. my interest is in doing research/design and i know, is malaysia the opportunities to do research/design in the aero field is very very very very limited - unless if i work under univ. as a prof (err... i dont think i can do teaching very well :p). plus if there are companies who do such work, i can imagine the influence of politics in it . simply look at what happened to eagle...

2. singapore is called the 'aerospace hub' in SEA. there should be a reason why singapore is labelled as such. thus, i want to know by experiencing it (the technology, facilities, etc.). then, later down the road, optimisticaly thinking, the stuff learnt can be brought into malaysia to improve the industry here :)

3. jauh berjalan, luas pandangan - simply said. ive work with americans here, thus i learnt their attitude in handling stuff. im refering to the good ones (as compared to mesian) only, though i bet you all are aware they have some notorious attitude as well :p i want to learn/observe the same thing also, thus explain to myself why and how singapore develop faster than malaysia :)

those are some brief and quick points. details and elaboration are omitted since time is limited for me :p need some more?

bp_ffei

03-05-2005, 02:47 PM

plus if there are companies who do such work, i can imagine the influence of politics in it . simply look at what happened to eagle...

Sorry... I don't know who/what is eagle and I don't know what happened... please enlighten me :)

thus, i want to know by experiencing it (the technology, facilities, etc.). then, later down the road, optimisticaly thinking, the stuff learnt can be brought into malaysia to improve the industry here :)

Entah kenapa, I feel good after reading this. Getting in touch with my patriotic self again? Haha... :D

gonjeng

04-05-2005, 03:37 PM

gonjeng wrote: plus if there are companies who do such work, i can imagine the influence of politics in it . simply look at what happened to eagle...

Sorry... I don't know who/what is eagle and I don't know what happened... please enlighten me Smile

hmm in brief... lancair (if i remember correctly) agreed to work together with ctrm malacca to develop eagle aircraft - something like a joint-venture, or sth... obviously, should this worked well, there's a huge money pot waiting for the ppl in-charge. as the saying goes "ade gula ade semut", therefore "ade duit, ade politicians". these ppl get in, trying to maximize the profit or what not. bla bla bla, in short, the americans were pissed and hence, the project stalled. i heard two views from this onwards. one (ex-managers, who was trapped in the politics) said the project was long gone, once the politicians stepped in. the other is from a high-rank government servant, who said the project is still on-going but a very slow pace... some marketing problems, etc.

digimushu

04-05-2005, 07:30 PM

gonjeng

06-05-2005, 08:29 AM

This is what i dislike about M'sia. Everytime there is a big project, or if there is money, you will find politicians hounding the people in charge of the project. Much as i wish that the situation will change, i doubt that it will.

yup it saddens me quite a bit, esp when in the stage of looking for decent jobs - or at least, the ones that i like. but then, isnt it the rule of thumb that politics = dirty, hence, whatever has politics in it, even the smell, has high potential to be dirty as well :)

anyhow, i concur that the situation wont change and its typical all over the world - or at least in the third world countries, where "greed clouds the rich man's mind" :) nevertheless, i still believe it is possible to set up sth (company, org., etc.) that is politics-free, esp if all board members are up to it. the connection with the government is done on 'need' basis hehehe... heh, me and my dream :)

bp_ffei

09-05-2005, 07:17 PM

As I was researching about the prospects of the aerospace industry in Singapore, i came upon this website, which is titled "Good growth prospects for global aviation industry":

http://www.sedb.com/edbcorp/sg/en_uk/index/in_the_news/2003/2005/the_opening_of_st.html

mutterfricken

10-05-2005, 11:34 AM

http://www.recom.org/internshipasia/content/view/18/38/

zingkov

26-05-2005, 08:37 PM

hai..i am a fresh graduate from UTM, aeronautical engineering. now temporarily working as a research assistant. n hopefully i will continue my master n phd very soon...abroad definitely...nice to meet u guys..

digimushu

27-05-2005, 11:58 AM

Welcome zingkov,

Congratulations on graduation. Enjoy your time in the engineering SIG~~!

zingkov

28-05-2005, 01:14 AM

so...bp_ffei, u have decided where to go? NTU or NUS?

yah, aero degree is a new program in NTU...i saw lots of poster about that around NTU when i visited their campus few months ago. Personally, i think being as the 1st batch there poses no big problem, as quite a number of aero courses already being taught for years there. for instance, my kai mui (cantonese) just spent a semester there (under some kind of exchange program), learning aerodynamics & aircraft structures. She said the quality there is high, both syllabus n students, at least a few times better than my university.

NUS's aero program i dont know, but i have stayed in both NUS & NTU, their general facility n environment are just splendid. Both are in the list of top-25 U in the world. But i must admit that i don't know if they have sufficient aero-facilities (like wind tunnel) or not...

for mutterfricken, gonjeng, digimushu & weich, may i know which U are u all from?

gonjeng

28-05-2005, 03:19 AM

for mutterfricken, gonjeng, digimushu & weich, may i know which U are u all from?

wuhoo... im back in the states. well, partly "wuhoo" and partly "darn it!". anyhow, zingkov... i did my undergrad and am doing my masters in Embry Riddle Aeronautical Univ. in daytona beach, FL :) and congrats opn completing your undergrads :D

weich

28-05-2005, 04:55 AM

i'm in imperial college, london currently....been designing the aircraft fuselage for an aerobatic aircraft...any tips?...hehe =)

digimushu

28-05-2005, 12:19 PM

Zingkov,

I am currently a Ph.D candidate in Mechanical Engineering at Virginia Tech in the Advanced Vehicle Dynamics Laboratory (www.avdl.me.vt.edu). I finished my undergrad in Michigan Tech in Electrical Engineering in 2003. :)

bp_ffei

28-05-2005, 10:06 PM

so...bp_ffei, u have decided where to go? NTU or NUS?

I have decided on NTU... Haha... Oh well... hope everything turns out fine :wink:

Btw, congrats to you zingkov!

mutterfricken

29-05-2005, 10:15 AM

for mutterfricken, gonjeng, digimushu & weich, may i know which U are u all from?

just like sze fei, I am going to NTU this year to read Aerospace Engineering....... i am sure that there won't be any shortage of facilities as the EDB is the mastermind behind this course and they have spent several years doing the necessary preparation before the inception of the course. Anyway if u know of anyone who wants to study in singapore, do tell them that there is this new SIG called Singapore Life and Education.... this SIG is meant to help Malaysians to glean the necessary information about education in Singapore.

zingkov

30-05-2005, 01:27 AM

1st, to all aero-guy, thx for the congratulations...but frankly speaking, though i successfully completed the rather 'stressful' undergraduate study here in UTM, for 5 years, with quite a satisfied result, but i really feel like merely scratching the surface of the entire body of aero-knowledge...still tonnes & tonnes of thing for me to explore...

Gonjeng, for long i have been wondering about the learning atmosphere and studying life at Embry Riddle Aero U. Mind simply brief about the situation there? Are all their staffs really so frantically obssessed with the aero-field? students also? I guess then the U must have its own runway, haven't it? lecturer-to-student ratio?

Weich, imperial college...actually i wanted to apply to their MSc program, but the sad thing is that they only offer 2 programs, which are MSc in Composite Material & MSc in Advanced Computational Method...while i prefer more on Aircraft Structure. I chose MSc rather than research master becoz i wanted to experience lectures in other country. For UK's U, i only applied to U of Bath & Cranfield U. The former 1 said OK dy, the latter 1 hadn't reply me yet. For ur aerobatic a/c project, can i know what's its design range for weight, speed, g limit, hp, climb rate & perhaps rate of roll? just curious...n i fancy designing aerobatic a/c is tough man, have to make sure it can achieve precise control of speed & attitude on 3 axes...but u r just concenring the fuselage structural design, right?

Digimushu, yes, u r doing phd. I later found out ur posts on 'Research Degree', n read all of it. nice info! My lecturers always say PHD in US is way harder...especially with all those qualifying tests & committee member stuffs...makes me nervous.

sze fei, i think u make the right choice...

mutterfricken, 1 of my senior (aero) just obtained admission from NUS (research master on "Large Eddy Simulation of Turbulent Flow in Curved Square Annular Duct")...i will call him to join the singapore SIG. the sayang thing is most of my friends (primary school) already graduated from NUS/NTU...n i lost their contact no...

gonjeng

02-06-2005, 11:42 PM

Gonjeng, for long i have been wondering about the learning atmosphere and studying life at Embry Riddle Aero U. Mind simply brief about the situation there? Are all their staffs really so frantically obssessed with the aero-field? students also? I guess then the U must have its own runway, haven't it? lecturer-to-student ratio?

heh why erau (abbreviated)? honestly speaking, if you are looking for undergrad studies, i wouldnt object going to this place although there are some other U's which are better. if master is what you are looking for, i would suggest some other places, such as university of florida (UF), etc. well unless if you dont mind spending a couple of thousands, while you are not guaranteed to get the best education for the money you have put. the only reason i am here is because i am offered a research assistant position to be a flight test engineer - which i believe is hard for foreigners (espcially nowadays) to get.

the U is connected to the airport. in fact, the airport is just next to the U that whenever an airline takes off, the only thing you can hear is the roar from the engines (exagerated little bit :p). but it is annoying esp when the teacher is teaching in class, or while you are presenting in front of the class.

as for the students, not all students are very into airplanes. i would say most are, since the U is expanding into some non-aero fields. most talks about airplance revolve around the fighter jets :) and the student-teacher ratio is about 23-1 for undergrad and 10-1 for masters (merely because there arent that many masters students to begin with :p).

to conclude, if you are looking for a U to further your studies, you want to look for other U's. in florida itself, i would suggest university of florida. the main criteria is the research that the U has...

mutterfricken

03-06-2005, 11:17 PM

thanx zingkov......

gonjeng

23-06-2005, 12:31 AM

hey guys... i would like to suggest that we share some pics on whatever projects we have or still are working on. im sure some of us who are in third or fourth/last year of our study may have or still are working on some project, be it in-class (design class) or out of class (SAE aero design for instance). or some who are in graduate schools or what not, surely there's some stuff to share. the purpose?

1. to motivate other to be more motivating by seeing others achievements
2. to learn from each other (no speenfeed though!) since we know who work on what
3. more but too lazy to think right now :)

also, altho pictures worth a thousand words, but if it comes without description (a paragraph, if not a 2,3 sentences), it can be meaningless or be intepreted wrongly. so do kindly describe briefly about the pics.

so what do you guys think? i'll start mine once ive found where i put the pics at :)

weich

23-06-2005, 09:58 AM

ok, i'll start then and here's a picture of the a/c, not the best pic but that's all i have at the moment.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v260/wczeusu/plane.jpg

Just recently finished my project of designing an aerobatic jet which is capable of doing rolls of 400 deg/s, flies at Mach 0.5-6 and is expected to withstand loadings of up to +/-10G. It's also designed to compete against specialist aerobatic aircraft like the Sukhoi Su-29 and the Extra 300S.

Also, it not only has the specs to participate in the "Unlimited" competition level but it can be converted into a short-range personal cruise aircraft as well.

The aircraft's only 7.155m long and its flying qualities are pretty good as can be seen in the video where we put our aircraft into the flight simulator that you can download here:

http://zeusu.rabidhosting.com/LAJ-005.avi

So, who's next? =)

zingkov

23-06-2005, 09:37 PM

wei cher, the video is cool man!! hebat...

can i ask something? (plz forgive me if the following are stupid Qs)
1. Why does the a/c in the picture look different from the a/c in the video?

2. Is ur swept-forward wing configuration unprecedented as far as aerobatic a/c design is concerned? (coz quite a number of the aerobatic a/c that i know use rectangular (or slightly tapered) wings).

3. Extra 300 website also mentioned that their a/c being 'unlimited' category aerobatic a/c. What does 'unlimited' mean actually? keen to know...

4. How u 'put' ur designed a/c into the flight simulator?! u mean the software or program (i mean the wind & gust, thus the lift etc) can react towards ur a/c aerodynamic shape??

i m blur...hope u can enlighten me. thx!

(btw, i just opened an aero book, and it mentioned that swept-forward wings are good for its maneuverability and easier controlling..seemed to suit aerobatic a/c very much!)

weich

23-06-2005, 10:18 PM

can i ask something? (plz forgive me if the following are stupid Qs)
1. Why does the a/c in the picture look different from the a/c in the video?

I think it's because of the software used to scan in our CAD model into the flight simulator, minor differences really...could be due to the angle as well. Also, the picture contains the latest improvements after feedback from the flight simulator.

2. Is ur swept-forward wing configuration unprecedented as far as aerobatic a/c design is concerned? (coz quite a number of the aerobatic a/c that i know use rectangular (or slightly tapered) wings).

yes, it's supposed to give it better maneuverability.

3. Extra 300 website also mentioned that their a/c being 'unlimited' category aerobatic a/c. What does 'unlimited' mean actually? keen to know...

it's the top aerobatic competition level. Read more here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aerobatic_aircraft

4. How u 'put' ur designed a/c into the flight simulator?! u mean the software or program (i mean the wind & gust, thus the lift etc) can react towards ur a/c aerodynamic shape??

the underlying software is X-Plane which has aerodynamic modeling capability which makes it a ?Virtual Wind Tunnel?. Check it out here:

http://www.flightmotion.com/docs/imperial_pr.htm

gonjeng

24-06-2005, 11:06 PM

cool... nice stuff you got there weich. as zongkov said, ive never seen a forward swept wing acrobatic airplane before. hmm maybe you can post some of the 'marketing' performance data about the airplane, such as the max cruise speed, etc.

also... sorry for my ignorance, but why design the airplane to withstand up to +/- 10g? i thought the current FAA regulation for acrobatic airplane is up to 6g's only? ive been on a 2 seater pitts-2 before and hey, damn... to take 2g's is painful enough (obviously for somebody who's not familiar with acrobatic manuevers) hehehe...

gonjeng

24-06-2005, 11:27 PM

and heh, here are some from me :)

http://students.db.erau.edu/~mohdanwm/Personal/Pics/Baron58.jpg

that is a beechcraft baron 58. what we did to the airplane is we loaded the bird with instrumentation devices and then test flight it to obtain some aerodynamics data. these data were then used to program a flight simulator by frasca. i wish i have interior picture of the airplane but i may have lost it. anyhow, notice the word 'experimental' on the door and the 'alpha' and 'beta' sensor on the nose-cone of the aircraft?

http://students.db.erau.edu/~mohdanwm/Personal/Pics/C337.jpg

that is a cessna 337. the research was about achieving a short'er' takeoff and landing distance for the aircraft, by installing a 'second' wing above its current wing. we used sort of a 'hangglider' as a proof of concept. the goal is to reduce the distance by at least 50% but we managed to do it up to about 60% - i say its good enough though :p the takeoff distance was obtained from the flight test while the landing was from a simulation (simulink), using the experimental data obtained.

http://students.db.erau.edu/~mohdanwm/Personal/recomarrow.jpg

that is a piper arrow and this is the current project i am working on right now. we are installing a rotary engine on the aircraft and then test flight it. last year, we installed the turbo-charge rotary engine and presented it in oshkosh. this is about non-turbo-charged rotary engine. the pic of the engine itself is not available though since i dont want to be caught in distributing a sensitive design material :) but whoever goes to oshkosh airshow in wisconsin this year may be able to see it :D also, notice the 'mistral' logo on the side wall of the airplane? thats the sponsoring swiss-based company, who designed and ground tested the engines.

okay, that some of the pics i can (and allowed to) show right now. who's next?

weich

25-06-2005, 12:11 AM

unfortunately i don't have all the data currently, my coursemates & all disappear right after the presentation...but from what i remember during the presentation, it's performance is comparable to the Su-29 to 31 series.

Another interesting characteristics also include it being jet powered using a tiny engine similar to the Williams FJ44 (only about 1.2m long and 0.5m in diameter) - expect to see more of them in VLJs (the future airtaxis).

when i do all the data, will probably post it in AeroM yahoogroups.

It's quite common for aerobatic a/c in the unlimited category to be designed for +/-10G. In fact, the Su-29-31 series are designed for +12/-10G, even higher than ours! Never been in an aerobatic jet b4 but i think diving & then pulling up suddenly easily causes a huge jump in G loading.

Experienced 2G once in only a Jetstream 32 and it's already quite difficult to just lift your hands.

and yes, forward swept wings are not common but it's not like the X-29, where it's highly forward swept. Ours is only quite slight to give it better maneuveurability.

btw, i'm in charge of the fuselage structure, mainly design the stringers, skin, frames, bulkheads & cutouts =P Lotsa iteration work. anyway, if anyone's interested Aluminium's used for the fuselage but composites for the wings & empennage. Also, everything was completed in 5 weeks only so more improvements can actually be made still but time flies really quickly.

ok, everybody else show us more, don't be shy - i wanna see too!

aftershox

06-07-2005, 12:55 AM

I was just wondering if someone could explain to me the difference between aeronautical engineering and aerospace engineering? some ppl have told me it's the same thing and some have said it isn't. I just would like to know. Thanx..

weich

06-07-2005, 06:42 AM

i think they are almost the same, anyway, here are the definitions from wikipedia:

Aerospace is the study, the science and the technology of travel in the space above the Earth. (which means above ground i.e. in the atmosphere/outer space)

Aeronautics is the science and practice of aerial locomotion, i.e. of flying by aircraft.

so i guess the difference is the outer space part, which can be classified under Astronautics as well.

Anyway, both undergraduate courses are quite similar to each other in most universities. In fact, the more you learn the more you realise that there's even more to know/discover...

aftershox

06-07-2005, 01:27 PM

icic..
thanks alot weich...

bp_ffei

22-10-2005, 05:16 PM

I don't think A*Star has any projects related to aerospace. Their website is http://www.a-star.edu.sg/astar/index.do They mostly do research on bio- and nano- stuff.

Hm... after reading the Straits Times today, I have to retract the above statement. Can't put a link here because Straits Times Online is on a paid subscription basis, but here is an excerpt from the hardcopy version:

"Boeing has picked the Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*Star) as its latest international research partner, to develop anything from stronger and lighter materials for planes to better in-flight entertainment."

I'm sure this will be a boost to the aerospace industry's R&D here. Haha... I'm paying attention to these stuff because I have some interest on materials...

Other things in that article to note:
- Singapore's aerospace industry now boasts an annual output of S$4 billion.
-The Changi International Airshow will be held in 2008.

bp_ffei

22-10-2005, 05:35 PM

The LIMA Airshow 2005 (http://www.lima.com.my/) is coming up soon, 6~11 of December 2005, at the MIEC hall in Langkawi.

"The LIMA '05 Airshow, is a unique biennial event. As the region?s premier showcase of the latest state-of-the-art equipment and technology in the aerospace, air defence and civil aviation industries, this event is the place for companies to show off their high-tech innovations to the growing defence markets of the Asia?Pacific region." (Quoted from WingsOverAsia.com (http://www.wingsoverasia.com/calendar_event.php?eid=20050926020420794) )

My uni's aerospace club is organising a trip there but I won't be able to go :cry: haiz... I'll go 2 years later lah~

weich

22-10-2005, 06:25 PM

hi, bp_ffei have you joined the Aerospace Malaysia yahoogroups yet?

There are some real aerospace engineers in the group + some PhD guys in there. Here's the link to sign up:

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aerom/join

Ask your fellow coursemates too.

bp_ffei

24-10-2005, 03:16 AM

Yep, I've joined. There are roughly 15 Malaysians out of the 70 or so Aerospace Engineering students. On the last count I know about 12 of them... I'll try to spread the word...

weich

24-10-2005, 03:47 PM

that's great...if you wanna know who's in the group, feel free to browse through the previous messages...we have all introduced ourselves 3-4 times already, so some ppl are abit tired of that =)

bp_ffei

10-11-2005, 09:02 PM

Some news from the Singapore aerospace industry...

"Aircraft maker Airbus' parent company, European Aeronautic Defence and Space (EADS), has picked Singapore for its first research and technology centre outside Europe." (Straits Times)

This decision has been made thanks to the effort of the Economic Development Board (EDB). EADS will initially hire about 25 people to research commercial aircraft and defence-related products and technologies.

Next...

Airbus A380 is landing in Singapore tomorrow! Too bad only special guests will get to have a tour of the plane. Nevertheless, I'll be going with a group of friends. Hope to take some pictures... The A380 will be going to Australia after this and will be going to KLIA after that.