Finsbury student nets €30,000 for revolutionary aeroplane plan

Team Multifun's idea involves harnessing the energy from the plane wing vibrations (Image: Archant)

Dhamotharan Veerasamy, who studies at City University, in Northampton Square, beat off 500 teams from all over the globe to come first in a challenge to change the future of aviation.

The PHD student, along with inventors from the US, Holland and India, designed a skin for aircraft wings, which harness energy from natural vibrations and turn them into electricity to power infight systems.

Mr Veerasamy said: “It was a great experience to be one of the Fly Your Ideas finalists and to be crowned the global champions. All five finalist teams proposed their unique idea with powerful presentation skills and we were sure it would have been a great difficulty for the jury to choose the winner.

“It was one of the unforgettable moments in my life when team MultiFun was announced as winner.

Team Multifun's sketch demonstrates how their idea will work (Image: Archant)

“The competition encouraged students to come up with new ideas constructing the bridge between academia and industry. I’d like to thank Airbus for providing such a wonderful opportunity.”

Another team, Bolleboos, comprised of three City students from City, also reached the final round with their design to wirelessly power planes while taxiing - but just missed out on the grand prize.

Chris Atkin, Professor of Aeronautical Engineering at City said: “We’re all delighted for Dhamotharan and his team, to whom we were able to provide support in the run-up to the final.

““I think it’s a major achievement for the team members to have pulled their submissions together while working remotely at four locations across the globe. The idea was interesting and well-researched, and their presentation material was coherent and well-delivered.