TRAINEES from Leonardo in Yeovil supporting the recent Grand Final of the Flying Start challenge at the University of Bristol, urged participants to use the tools gathered throughout their participation as the groundwork for their future careers, regardless of their placing in the competition.

The Flying Start Challenge competition was created for school students across the South West of England to develop their knowledge of aerospace engineering and gain hands-on experience in the engineering design and build process.

The team from Leonardo in Yeovil supported the challenge in collaboration with a host of advanced engineering companies including Airbus, Atkins, MBDA, GE Aerospace, and Safran Landing Systems.

Over 94 regional finalists aged 11-14 years of age drawn from 18 schools across the South West of England, grasped the spirit of competition with great enthusiasm.

Their approach to the activities seemed to confirm that they had absorbed one of the most important principles of engineering – close collaboration with team members.

In addition to the lessons and build sessions provided by the Leonardo Flying Start Challenge team, the event was supported by Leonardo employees Catherine Phillips (Head of Enterprise Governance), Tania Bartlett (Head of Transformation), Jennifer Miles, Harry Parsons, Callum Jones, Joe Cooke, Iqraa Hassain, Will Palfrey, David Dibben, Andrew Paterson, and Nick Pilato.

Nicholas Pilato, a Leonardo STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Maths) ambassador, said: “The series of engineering activities and challenges saw pupils work closely together in their teams to build, test, and optimise their glider designs while truly demonstrating their engineering capability.

“It was brilliant to see the teams of pupils working together while utilising and honing their engineering skills which they have developed at school and during the taught lessons provided by Flying Start Challenge over the last few months.”

Teams were divided into groups for a series of activities hosted in the engineering laboratories at the University of Bristol.

These included a fly-off where participants competed the abilities of their hand-built gliders, and the creation of a floating boat from basic materials including recycled items to hold the most mass possible without sinking.

Students were also given a tour of a flight simulator, wind tunnels, and composites construction as well as a challenge to design the longest cantilever beam possible that was still capable of holding a weight.

They also took part in the design and build of an elastic band car, built to travel the furthest distance possible using only the potential energy stored in an elastic band for propulsion.

First place overall was clinched by Clifton High School (The Gliding Cows) with Crypt School (MARC Airlines) in second place and Bucklers Mead School (The Magic Airbus) in third.

Over the course of the day, Bucklers Mead School’s team, mentored by Leonardo also took the top prize in the Fly-Off for the competition.

Jennifer Miles, a Leonardo STEM ambassador said: “The Flying Start Challenge Grand Final fostered the creativity, curiosity, and spirit of cooperation that advances the aerospace industry.

“Students participated in STEM activities, demonstrated innovative glider designs, and were introduced to cutting-edge aerospace research - including the use of drones to monitor endangered wildlife and to collect samples from active volcanoes.

“We were inspired by the students’ technical capabilities and look forward to inviting Yeovil’s schools back to next year’s event.”

Reflecting on the lasting impact of the mentoring received by the Leonardo team, Mark Lawrence, head teacher at Bucklers Mead School, said: “Over many years Buckler's Mead Academy students have benefitted greatly from taking part in the Flying Start Challenge and the support and mentoring that is offered by Leonardo.

“That coupled with the hard work of Ron Tofts, from our Design and Technology Department, has ensured many students have gone on to careers in engineering having fostered a real interest in this particular project.

“Winning the glider challenge and third overall is a fantastic accomplishment of which the whole Buckler's Mead Academy community is extremely proud.”