Three Romanian students awarded in the USA for a revolutionary airplane wing that reduces fuel consumption and makes the airplane "invisible"
Three students from Romania were awarded at the International Science and Engineering Fair (ISEF), the most important and prestigious science and engineering competition in the world for those under 21 years old.
The final phase of the competition took place in Los Angeles, USA.
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Filip Bușcu, David Ghiberdic and Rareș Marinescu, students at the International Computer High School of Bucharest, invented and built an airplane wing capable of increasing aircraft maneuverability, reducing fuel consumption by up to 5%, and imparting invisibility properties to the aircraft.
Their project, titled Hawk Wing, was examined over three days by nine committees consisting of representatives from major American universities, leading technology companies, and even the US Army.
Regeneron ISEF is unanimously considered by the American and British academic community to be the most prestigious STEM competition in the world, far ahead of International Science Olympiads, and this is the first time Romania has made it to the podium.
Every year, thousands of participants from dozens of countries try to win a prize that usually grants access to universities in the USA and the UK. In 2024, over 1,800 students from 76 countries competed.
"We had only one month to build the prototype, fly it and collect some of the data to confirm our theory", said Filip Bușcu. "We built it three times, because we crashed it twice, but it seems that our determination to fight until the last moment impressed the examiners", he added.
Filip Bușcu is the initiator and leader of the Romanian Orbital Mission space program, which launched the ROM-2 and ROM-3 satellites, Romania's first functional satellites, into Earth's orbit. David Ghiberdic was part of the ROM-3 project team, and Rareș Marinescu is a multiple medalist at International Physics Olympiads.
Currently, the students are involved in several aerospace projects, including a large satellite with advanced research missions, built in collaboration with two major American universities.
