April
22-24, 2016
Hosted By:
ALPHA Class
Alpha Class for 2016 will be a turbine aircraft
design competition and exposition. Teams are invited
to develop
novel prototype aircraft in
response to a statement of work requesting a turbine sport jet /
trainer designed around the Kingtech K-45G turbine engine.
Each
team will perform flight demonstrations of their prototypes, as well as
host an exposition of their design to industry judges as well as
spectators.
Contents:
Objectives Flight Procedures and
Scoring
Event Safety Requirements
Contest Day Information
Eligibility
Entry Form Format
Deadlines
Speedfest Site
FAQ's
Objectives
Teams are invited to respond to the following
Statement of Work (SOW): TURBINE-POWERED
RP SPORT-JET / TRAINER
Latest Document Revision 10 April, 2016
Event Safety
Requirements
Safety
must be the number one priority of all contest participants. The
Speedfest organizers have gone to great lengths to keep the event safe
for participants and spectators. Please carefully note the
following:
- Contestants are expected to conduct themselves, and operate
their aircraft in accordance to the AMA Safety Code. (the following
link contains all AMA documents including the Safety Code: http://www.modelaircraft.org/documents.aspx)
- Every
person beyond the spectator line (including officials), must
wear a helmet approved by OSHA, DOT, ANSI, SNELL,NOCSAE or other
recognized organization that certifies safety equipment.
There is
a very wide variety of helmets that meet these criteria including;
skateboarding helmets, bicycle helmets,
construction hard-hats,
etc.
- Any flight crew member involved with starting the aircraft
engine
at any time (flightline or pits), Or holding the plane at runup/start,
must wear official safety
glasses and hearing protection (earplugs or earmuffs designed for
hearing protection)
- Flight
Crew: Required minimum flight crew is 4 members
(Pilot, Caller, and 2 Flagmen). Beyond that, the number and
makeup
of the flight crew is at the discretion of each team, however it may
consist of a maximum of 7 team members. Functions of flight crew
members may be combined if desired. All must verify current
AMA
membership at the event. Typical flight crew functions
include:
- Caller:
Stands by the pilot to call turns.
- Crew Flagmen:
Minimum
of two. Stand near turn marker judges to indicate turn line
passage
- Recovery:
(Optional)
Only flight crew and contest officials may
go recover aircraft
- Starter/Timer:
(Optional) Teams may have a member assist with
starting the engine on the
runway, and runup prior to start. The person may also serve
as a timer or additional flagman.
- When a team
number is called for a flight, only flight crew may enter the field
beyond the spectator area.
- All aircraft
to be flown must go through an airworthiness inspection.
- All team
members, who attend the
event should be AMA members. It is the opinion of
the organizers that all
team members, must be committed to the AMA safety code
when designing, building, and flying, unmanned aircraft.
- Teams must have a CO2 fire extinguisher
- Airplanes may not be run up on the mat runway to avoid
burning through the mat.
Pilots
- Speedfest is
not an event
appropriate for novice pilots. Teams should use
experienced
pilots
with a record of safety.
- Pilots must have an AMA Turbine Waiver
- Pilot instructions:
- Safety must be the primary responsibility of every pilot.
- If
there is some aspect of the airplane that the pilot deems unsafe, he
must ensure the team takes corrective action before flight.
- Pilots
must follow the instructions of the safety officer during flight.
If instructed to abort, or even sacrifice the airplane for
safety, the pilot must do so immediately without question.
- Pilots
must never allow the airplane to cross a line defined by the West edge
of the runway. If the line is crossed, power must be cut
immediately, and a turn made away from the spectators.
Contest-Day
Information
- Mandatory
Items to bring:
- Current
AMA membership cards for flight crews
- Proof of flight outlined in SOW
- Helmets, safety glasses, hearing protection, and
gloves for Flight
Crew listed above.
- CO2 Fire extinguisher
Registration
During
the designated time on the day of the event, flight crews must
register. Speedfest officials will then provide each with a
flight line pass. Registration consists of the following:
- Flight
crews must each show proof of current AMA membership
- Flight
Crews, advisors, and mentors should report with their airplane to have
a team photo taken.
Flight Sequence
- Teams will
be assigned a queue number.
- Numbers will
be called in sequence from 1 to n
- Only
teams that are called to the flight line may pass the spectator line
and enter the course. They must wear the appropriate safety
gear.
- Alpha
Class: Each team has an X
minute window when called to the
flight
line. Within that window, the team must be able to
set up
their plane, compete, and clear the course. Failure to leave
the
course in the X minute
window will result in forfeiting the team’s
time slot in the next round. Continued violation will result
in
losing best score.
Speedfest Marketing Video Award
Speedfest
Teams that create promotional videos have the opportunity to
be
recognized at the event, and to receive awards. Videos can
promote: their team, airplane, university, country,
Speedfest, or any
combination of these in an entertaining and informative way.
Guidelines:
- Videos may
be no more than 2 minutes in length total.
- May
not refer to specific competitors teams in a negative light.
- May
not contain material considered to be obscene by professional standards.
- Royalty-free
music is preferred.
Teams should test their videos on YouTube so that they are not removed
or muted due to copyrighted music.
Teams
will send the YouTube link of their videos to the SpeedfestAero address
no
later than April 19,
and the winner will be
chosen by electronic voting. There are no restrictions on who
may
vote. Votes will be accumulated from April 19, until
Speedfest contest day.
Eligibility
- Speedfest
Alpha Class team entries must be pre-approved by the Speedfest
coordinators
- To compete, teams must have a pilot with an AMA Turbine
Waiver
- Aircraft must have flown AMA Waiver maneuvers safely before
the event, or teams will be not be allowed to participate.
- All team
members should be current AMA members. Flight crew must be AMA members.
Entry Form Format
For
each team entered,
send a separate email with the following information in the following
format:
-
Academic
institution name
-
Team Name
- Team Contact email
- Team Advisor email
- Team Pilot email (if Speedfest pilot not being used)
In
the Subject line
of
your email write: “Alpha Class Speedfest Entry Request, (Team
Name), (date)”
Subject line example:
Alpha Class Speedfest Entry Request, ZSU Zebras, 21Sept2012
Send
entries to:
Deadlines
- Teams
may enter at any time.
- Optional
Promotional Video due no later than April 19
Contest Site
Speedfest
is held at the
Unmanned
Aircraft Flight Station (UAFS) in Stillwater, Oklahoma.
GPS
Location:
lat=36.1632229 lon=-96.836514
Stillwater
Oklahoma is approximately 75 miles from two major airports: Tulsa
International Airport in Tulsa, OK, and Will Rogers Airport
in
Oklahoma City, OK.
Airfield Directions:
From all
directions, the best way to get to the UAFS is to drive to the
intersection of Hwy 51 (E 6th st.) and N. Clay Road (bulls-eye
in map below). Then take
Clay road north approximately 3.2 miles. The UAFS is just
north
of the intersection of N. Clay Rd. and E. Airport Rd.
Speedfest
Site Diagram and Course Layout
FAQ's