From the 27th of May to the 1st of June 2024, as AS Bordeaux, we had the opportunity to host a Fly-In, welcoming EUROAVIAns from all over Europe. We took the chance to also organise a conference open to the public during this week, called “Conquering a New Sky”.
After having welcomed and helped our visitors get settled in the residence the evening before, on the 28th we started the day with a Team Building activity. We formed 7 teams of 3 participants with the goal to get to know each other better and make connections while designing a water rocket that would be tested at a competition. During the whole week we were trained by the NAASC, Association of higher education institutions in Nouvelle-Aquitaine, at the École nationale supérieure d’Arts et Métiers (ENSAM).
In the afternoon, we visited the Aerocampus Aquitaine campus. We were able to see the different training courses that are given there. From maintenance to test benches and military training (helihovers, Rafale maintenance, Falcon 7X, etc…). We were lucky to be accompanied by one former engineer of the air force and a former engineer on Rafale. They answered most of the technical questions that the participants could ask them, making the visit fascinating.
On Wednesday morning, we continued the construction of the water rockets, and then we organised the competition to launch them. This competition was filmed by a drone used by Mr. Belly (NAASC, AJSEP). The competition would decide the winner by taking into consideration the following aspects: whether the parachute works or not, the maximum height reached and the design. For the anecdote, we won with a height of 48 m! At the end, the teams received medals that we had machined in the ENSAM workshops.
Then, in the afternoon, we visited the AIA test benches, on the site of Crois d’Hins. The site director welcomed us, and an engineer of AIA explained to us the operation of the test benches. These benches are used to test engines at full power, including post-combustion for turbojets, before delivering them to customers. We were able to see the benches of the M-53 engines of Mirage 2000, and those of military helicopters like the Tiger.
During the evening, we had our cultural night, where we had a chance to celebrate and relax. We decided to leave the next day’s morning free, so our participants would recharge their batteries and get ready to walk around Bordeaux’s city centre.
On Thursday the 30th, we hosted the conference “Conquering a new sky” at Talence campus. The conference took place as part of an international week organised by the students and was therefore held in English. The aim was to raise awareness of the future of aerospace, a future in which engineering students will be at the forefront. To this end, three speakers participated:
- Mr Buffenoir, DT of Way4Space, speaking on the Newspace
- Mr Soldano, Rafale program officer for the French Navy, speaking on the future of this aircraft (AI implementation, SPECTRA, and other)
- Ms. Chevalier, flight test manager at the DGA, speaking on the presentation of her course and a test campaign.
The conference brought together more than fifty people including EUROAVIANs, students, professors and industrialists. It ended with a buffet in which the speakers and participants came together and had a chat about the topics discussed during the conference.
On the last day, we took a trip to the Dune du Pyla. Participants were able to enjoy this beautiful place to swim and admire the landscapes of the French coast. The week ended with a «final dinner» at the Bistro Régent, allowing us to exchange one last time about this week and say goodbye.
AS Bordeaux