Cranfield University

Course Details

Aircraft Design option - MSc in Aerospace Vehicle Design

Course Description

The Aircraft Design option consists of 12 compulsory modules and a minimum of 60 hours of optional modules, which are selected from a list of 12 options. You are also required to complete a group design project and an individual research project. A unique feature of the course is that we have four external examiners, two from industry who assess the group design project and two from academia who assess the individual research project. Group project The extensive group design project is a distinctive and unique feature of this course. This teamwork project takes place over six months and recreates a virtual industrial environment bringing together students with various experience levels and different nationalities into one integrated design team. Students are given responsibility for the detailed design of a significant part of the aircraft, for example, forward fuselage, fuel system, landing gear, environmental control system, wing. The project will progress from the conceptual phase through to the preliminary and detail design phases. You will be required to run project meetings, produce engineering drawings and detailed analyses of your design. Problem solving and project co-ordination must be undertaken on a team and individual basis. At the end of the project, groups are required to report and present findings to a large panel of senior engineers from industry. This element of the course is both realistic and engaging, and places the student group in a professional role as aerospace design engineers. Students testify that working as an integrated team on real problems is invaluable and prepares them well for careers in a highly competitive industry. Watch past presentation videos (YouTube) to give you a taster of our innovative and exciting group projects: Blended Wing Body Aircraft A9 Dragonfly Box Wing Aircraft MRT7 Tanker Aircraft A-13 Voyager SL-12 Vimana. Individual project The individual research project aims to provide the training necessary for you to apply knowledge from the taught element to research. The project may be theoretical and/or experimental and drawn from a range of topics related to the course and suggested by teaching staff, your employer or focused on your own area of interest. It provides the opportunity for you to deepen your knowledge of an area that is of particular interest, and is often associated with a real-world problem that one of our industry partners is looking to resolve. Previous Individual Research Projects include: Ultra Long Range Science UAV Structure / Systems Development Conceptual Design of a Hypersonic Space Launcher and Global Transportation System Effect of Aerodynamics on the Conceptual Design of Blended Wing Body Aircraft Review, Evaluation and Development of a Microlight Aircraft Feasibility of the Application of Low Cost Scaled Aircraft Demonstrators. Assessment Taught modules 10%, Group project 50%, Individual research project 40% University Disclaimer Keeping our courses up-to-date and current requires constant innovation and change. The modules we offer reflect the needs of business and industry and the research interests of our staff and, as a result, may change or be withdrawn due to research developments, legislation changes or for a variety of other reasons. Changes may also be designed to improve the student learning experience or to respond to feedback from students, external examiners, accreditation bodies and industrial advisory panels. To give you a taster, we have listed the core modules and some optional modules affiliated with this programme which ran in the academic year 2016–2017. There is no guarantee that these modules will run for 2017 entry. All modules are subject to change depending on your year of entry. Core modules Airframe System Design Design and Analysis of Composite Structures Loading Actions Aircraft Stability and Control Aircraft Performance Design for Manufacture and Operation Fatigue Fracture Mechanics and Damage Tolerance Aeroelasticity Reliability, Safety Assessment and Certification Flight Experience Initial Aircraft Design Detail Stressing Optional Computing Aided Design (CATIA) Aircraft Aerodynamics Structural Dynamics Structural Stability Aircraft Power Plant Installation Aerospace System Development and Life Cycle Model Integrated Vehicle Health Management Crashworthiness Landing Gear Design Finite Element Analysis

Course Duration

NumberDuration
1year

Career outcomes

This MSc is valued and respected by employers worldwide. The applied nature of this course ensures that our graduates are ready to be of immediate use to their future employer and has provided sufficient breadth of understanding of multi-discipline design to position them for accelerated career progression. Graduates from this option have gone on to pursue engineering careers in disciplines such as structural design, stress analysis or systems design. Many of our graduates occupy very senior positions in their organisations, making valuable contributions to the international aerospace industry. Typical student destinations include BAE Systems, Airbus, Dassault and Rolls-Royce.




Aircraft Design option - MSc in Aerospace Vehicle Design Cranfield University