IO, Surabaya – The Bayucaraka team from Institut Teknologi Sepuluh Nopember (ITS) has placed first in the fixed-wing category of the 2019 Tübitak International Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) competition in Teknofest 2019 in Istanbul, Turkey. The trophy was awarded by President of Turkey, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, on Sunday (22/9/2019) evening.
ITS Batucaraka team General Manager Putu Wisnu Bhaskara Putrawan admitted that early on the team was not aware that the man presenting the trophy would be President Erdoğan. “Only when leaving the stage. We were all surprised after finding out from a live stream on YouTube that he was Erdoğan,” said Putu in a press release received by Independent Observer, Monday (23/9/2019).
During the award ceremony, teams were forbidden from bringing any items other than their handphones and were searched thoroughly before going on stage to receive their trophies. “There were even many armed guards around the stage,” he said.
Interestingly, said the Department of Computer Engineering junior, the president only personally handed over awards for the teams which placed first in the tournament. “This made the team happy and proud,” said Putu.
The competition is part of the largest technology festival in Turkey: Teknofest. All advanced technology products are displayed at the event, ranging from aircraft technology, jets, military vehicles, flying car concepts, and more.
Putu hopes that the ITS Bayucaraka team can participate in following the efforts of world-class Indonesian scientist, Bacharuddin Jusuf (B.J.) Habibie in the national aerospace field. “With a place like this, we can create and prove to the world that we can compete.”
After witnessing the success of ITS Bayucaraka team’s robotic aircraft technology, Turkish Aerospace, which is an aircraft company in Turkey, gave the team an opportunity to visit its office in Turkey’s capital, Ankara. Putu stated that all needs and accommodations were supplied by the company with the company also gifting the team 10,000 Turkish Lira as appreciation for the team’s efforts in advancing technology.
According to Putu, Turkish Aerospace representatives were impressed with the aircraft created by the ITS Bayucaraka team. The Turkish Aerospace representatives were interested in the team’s aircraft design. “This is because the ITS Bayucaraka team’s aircraft seemed simple and clean compared to the other teams’,” he said.
Despite this, the ITS Bayucaraka team’s aircraft features respectable technology proven by the team receiving the highest score in two different missions in the competition. Most other teams were only able to score maximum points in one mission.
Several advantages of ITS Bayucaraka team’s aircraft include the ability to fly stably and rapidly and could be used as needed. “For next years competition, we must be better, and the knowledge we received cannot stop here,” said Putu. (*/est)