The University, in collaboration with ST Engineering Antycip and Merlin Flight Simulation Group, hosted the IT FLIES UK 2025 Aircraft Design and Handling competition. This annual event provides students with a platform to showcase their creativity and technical skills by testing aircraft designs on advanced flight simulators. Using Merlin's Excalibur flight simulation software, participants evaluated how their concepts performed in various scenarios under the guidance of experienced test pilots.
Swansea University's team FlyGrow Butterfly claimed victory against competitors from the Faculty of Science and Engineering, as well as teams from the University of South Wales and Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences.
The awards were distributed as follows:
- Best Aircraft Design: FlyGrow Bumblebee, Swansea University
- Best Innovative Aircraft: Little Red Dragon, University of South Wales
- Best Presentation: FlyGrow Bumblebee, Swansea University
Professor Ben Evans from Swansea University's aerospace engineering department expressed satisfaction with the team's performance. “We are delighted that once again a Swansea University team has done so well in the competition. We thoroughly enjoy hosting the event and having a chance to highlight our long-standing relationship with Antycip and the suite of Merlin flight simulation tools that it has provided.”
He added, “We are enormously proud of our aerospace degree programmes and giving students – from Swansea and further afield - the chance to use our facilities and simulators is always exciting. Once again, they showed great skill and ingenuity throughout the competition which we hope will help prepare them for successful careers in aerospace engineering.”
Amir Khosh, Merlin Manager at Antycip, congratulated Swansea University on their achievement. “Congratulations to Swansea University on an outstanding performance at the 25th edition of IT FLIES UK. Your commitment to innovation and applied learning came through in every design and presentation. At Antycip, we are proud to support your journey through simulation-led learning and to see the impact of the Merlin flight simulator in shaping the next generation of aerospace engineers.”
For more information about studying aerospace engineering at Swansea University.