2026-11-03 08:11:10
Bilkent University EB205 Engineering Team Reaches Top 10 in InnovAero 2026 Competition

The EB205 Engineering Team, operating within Bilkent University, has secured a place among the top 10 teams in the InnovAero 2026 competition organized by Lufthansa Technik, qualifying for the final. The team has been invited to attend the final event, which will take place in Hamburg, Germany, from December 2–4, 2026. Active in competitions and projects across various engineering fields, particularly aviation, EB205 consists of four students: Seçkin Kızılkaya, a first-year Electrical and Electronics Engineering student; Vedat Rohan Talaş, a third-year Mechanical Engineering student; Yaman Ali Arı, a fourth-year Mechanical Engineering student; and Burkay Tunçtürk, a fourth-year Computer Engineering student. The team's Acoustic VIP Cabin Design project, developed as part of InnovAero 2026, represents innovative engineering efforts in aviation on an international platform. Following this achievement, EB205 will compete alongside other finalist teams at the final event in Hamburg. EB205's activities extend beyond InnovAero. Team members continue to work on various projects, including the Teknofest Fixed-Wing Unmanned Aerial Vehicle competitions, the development of a solar-based localization system, the analysis of a tensegrity-based collision-resistant drone, and an autonomous cargo reception system for the Robotistan Maker Uno Q Competition. The team's solar-based localization system project is supervised by Prof. Dr. Sinan Gezici, while the collision-resistant drone analysis is conducted under the supervision of Assoc. Prof. Dr. Onur Özcan. EB205 also achieved significant success in various competitions and programs last year. The team secured third place in Türkiye in the TUSAŞ-Cenglab-Genç MÜSİAD idea4defence competition and received an honorable mention in the aviation category of the Ulaşan ve Erişen Türkiye 2053 R&D Competition organized by the Ministry of Transport and Infrastructure. Additionally, the team participated in the TUSAŞ HANGAR BİGG / TÜBİTAK 1812 Program with a collision-resistant payload release system project and received the award for the most acclaimed project in the law category at GDG Hackathon'26. The projects developed by Bilkent University students through interdisciplinary collaboration and innovative engineering approaches continue to strengthen EB205's presence in national and international competitions. The team's performance in the InnovAero 2026 final is eagerly anticipated.