Johns Hopkins Design Build Fly team with their RC plane

We are Design Build Fly at
Johns Hopkins University

A RC plane building team to compete at the annual AIAA DBF competition

The 3 Pillars

Step into any aspect of plane production that interests you

Design

Each year, new constraints are required for our plane, giving us ample opportunity to come up with creative solutions. Our team utilizes CAD and other software to optimize our plane!

Build

With access to the entirety of the Mechanical Engineering department's tools, we piece together our plane to turn it form dream to reality.

Fly

Finally, we put our plane to the test! It may be more apt to call this step 'Crash,' but each crashed prototype is experience for both our flyers and designers to utilize for the next prototype.

CAD model for the Design Build Fly aircraft

RC Plane Model 2026 - Peaking Jay!

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Our Progress Year to Year

2026

In 2026, our team designed its first fully carbon fiber aircraft, supported by a larger team and a stronger technical foundation. We are proud to have placed 17th out of 175 teams, another big step forward from the previous year!

2025

Building on the progress of the previous year, our team made tremendous improvements in both design and performance. We successfully completed Mission 1 and Mission 2, finished 49th out of 159 teams, and demonstrated the rapid growth of our revived program.

2024

In our first year back after the club’s revival, we successfully designed, built, and flew our aircraft at competition, placing 67th out of 149 teams. This marked an important milestone as we rebuilt the team, restored our technical foundation, and returned JHU DBF to competition.

For more information, check out our 'History' tab!