Design/Build/Fly is a radio-controlled aircraft competition sponsored by the American institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA), Cessna Aircraft Company, and Raytheon Missile Systems. The Office of Naval Research was also a sponsor until 2006. The competition is intended to challenge the AIAA student branches of each university to design, build, and fly a remote controlled airplane that can complete specific ground and flight missions. Additionally, the teams are required to submit a comprehensive design report detailing the most important aspects of their designs.
The competition rules and missions change every year. Usually, the teams must be and design to fly two missions in the competition fly-off, which is held towards the end of April, and also maintain a low Rated Aircraft Cost, a variable used to define the complexity of the design.
Different universities take different approaches to the competition. In most cases, the teams are composed of a mix of seniors and underclassmen doing DBF as an extracurricular activity; however, some universities use DBF for senior design projects. In general, historical results show that having more seniors in a team leads to a better final position at the competition.
| Year | Location | 1st Place | 2nd Place | 3rd Place | 4th Place | 5th Place |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1997 | Ragged Island, MD | University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign | Virginia Tech | Texas A&M University | Utah State University | West Virginia University |
| 1998 | Wichita, KS | University of Southern California ("Pepe") | Texas A&M University | Syracuse University | University of Texas, Austin | Utah State University [Paper Score] |
| 1999 | Pax River, MD | Utah State University | Oklahoma State University | University of Southern California ("H2OT Shark") | Georgia Institute of Technology | Texas A&M University |
| 2000 | Wichita, KS | Utah State University | Oklahoma State University 1 | University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign | Georgia Institute of Technology | Oklahoma State University 2 |
| 2001 | Pax River, MD | Oklahoma State University (Orange) | CalPoly - San Luis Obispo | Oklahoma State University (Black) | University of California, San Diego | Utah State University |
| 2002 | Wichita, KS | University of California, San Diego | University of Southern California ("SCrewball") | West Virginia University | University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign | Universita degli Studi di Roma |
| 2003 | Ridgely Airpark, MD | San Diego State University | CalPoly - San Luis Obispo | Universita degli Studi di Roma | University of Southern California ("SCyRaider") | Oklahoma State University (Black) |
| 2004 | Wichita, KS | Oklahoma State University (Black) | Oklahoma State University (Orange) | University of Southern California ("SCquirt") | University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign | CalPoly - San Luis Obispo |
| 2005 | Pax River, MD | Oklahoma State University (Black) | Oklahoma State University (Orange) | Washington State University | Virginia Tech | University of California, San Diego |
| 2006 | Wichita, KS | Oklahoma State University (Black) | Oklahoma State University (Orange) | CalPoly - San Luis Obispo (24" Wood) | University of Southern California ("SCtingray") | Istanbul Technical University |
| 2007 | Tucson, AZ | Massachusetts Institute of Technology | Oklahoma State University (Orange) | Purdue University | Oklahoma State University (Black) | Wichita State University |
| 2008 | Wichita, KS | Oklahoma State University (Black) | University of Texas, Austin (The Hornworks) | Oklahoma State University (Orange) | University of Texas, Austin (Orange Bullet) | University of Colorado - Boulder |
| 2009 | Tucson, AZ | Oklahoma State University (Black) | Oklahoma State University (Orange) | University of Southern California ("Turbo Encabulator") | Massachusetts Institute of Technology (Just Wing It) | University of California - Irvine (Zot Rocket) |
| 2010 | Wichita, KS | Oklahoma State University (Orange) | Oklahoma State University (Black) | Purdue University (B'Euler Up) | University of Texas, Austin (Bat Wing) | CalPoly - San Luis Obispo (Swings Both Ways) |
| 2011 | Tucson, AZ | Georgia Institute of Technology (There Will Be Buzz) | University of Southern California (The RFB) | Purdue University (The Golfstream) | Wichita State University (MiniWheat) | California Polytechnic State University (Balls Deep) |