Dutch university team comprising Indians wins Airbus ideas competition

A Dutch university team of four students, including two Indians, won this year's prestigious 'Airbus Fly Your Ideas' competition for their prototype on the application of wireless systems in aircraft instead of traditional wired systems.

The team 'Zero Heroes' from the Delft University of Technology, The Netherlands was among seven finalists selected after several rounds of the competition, which saw participation of more than 270 teams comprising more than 2,200 students from 72 countries.

"It was not easy. We had to cross different stages over the last 7-8 months. We worked hard to get at the top and we're very happy now," said Sujay Narayana, who along with Ashwij Narayanyan, Niels Hokke and Nikas (Dutch and German) won the 25,000 euro prize at the grand finale here Thursday evening.

The group presented their prototype demonstrating application of wireless systems in commercial aircraft instead of traditional wired systems.

Narayana, 31, who hails from Karnataka, argued that this idea solves the main limitation for IoT (Internet of Things) in aircraft by removing battery integration - a current challenge for safety and regulation. Furthermore, it reduces fuel consumption and weight while simplifying aircraft retrofit and maintenance needs, added Narayana, who is pursuing his PhD in computer science at the Delft University.

When asked if he plans to return to India after completing his studies, he told PTI, "Yes, that's always the plan."