The Edward F. Cross School of Engineering Flight Lab supports students as they construct and experiment with model airplanes/UAVs and quadcopters. This year, the lab’s wind tunnel received an impressive upgrade thanks to the work of five senior engineering students.
For their senior project, Iain Johnson, Caleb Snarr, and Micah Teehee worked on modifying the thrust and drag instrumentation of the wind tunnel to obtain more accurate and consistent thrust data for propellers of various sizes for variable motor power and wind speed. The other seniors, Kearstyn Davis and Tolu Osundina, focused on designing a new, larger test section with secure and simpler mounting.
These upgrades were completed by spring quarter 2025, just in time for propeller thrust and drag testing in Mechanics of Flight, where it will continue to be utilized. Future projects may even expand the wind tunnel’s scope to include fuselage and full airplane lift and drag measurements.
Mechanics of Flight is taught by Doug Thomsen, professor of engineering, who said, “This system has already allowed for improved characterization of propeller performance and has the promise of supporting full plane drag measurements. Other future applications include low-velocity testing of larger scale devices for class projects and senior capstone projects.”
WWU’s wind tunnel has been the subject of many senior engineering projects and has received incredible support from local sponsors including Reiff Manufacturing—who made the nozzle section for a previous project—and Key Technology—who provided the mounting hardware for this year’s test section.
The Flight Lab is one of many WWU engineering laboratory facilities. All students—from freshmen to seniors—work in a variety of these labs, from machine assembly to robotics, fluid mechanics to structures. WWU recognizes the necessity of hands-on experience for students developing a working, masterful understanding of complex realities and strives to provide ample opportunity for them to put their classroom education into real-world practice.
To learn more about the School of Engineering and the various other engineering laboratory facilities, visit wallawalla.edu/engineering.
Posted Sept. 24, 2025
