San Jose State University's UAV Engineering Team
We design, build, and fly fully autonomous aircraft for competitions.
Supported By
What is Spartan Flight?
Spartan Flight is San José State University's competitive drone engineering team, started in late 2025. We're a multidisciplinary group of students including mechanical engineers, electrical engineers, software developers, and aerospace enthusiasts who design, build, and fly fully autonomous unmanned aircraft systems.
Our team is intending to compete in the 2026 SUAS (Student Unmanned Aerial Systems) Competition, an annual international event where university teams are challenged to fly autonomous missions including waypoint navigation, target detection, payload delivery, and aerial mapping. We have built a custom drone with unique airframes, electronics, and flight software.
Founded in 2025 at SJSU, the largest public university in Silicon Valley, Spartan Flight has already completed flight testing, built a working competition vehicle, and registered for SUAS 2026.
Our Teams
Our four subteams are focused on building one cohesive, high-performance autonomous drone.
Mechanical
Designs the airframe, landing gear, and payload mechanisms. Carbon fiber layups, 3D-printed mounts, structural testing — the physical aircraft starts here.
Electrical
Custom PCBs, Li-ion battery packs with our own BMS, power distribution, and sensor wiring. Every wire on the vehicle goes through this team.
Software
Autonomous flight. Path planning, computer vision for target detection, obstacle avoidance, and ground station control. This team helps the drone fly autonomously.
Business
Sponsorships, fundraising, outreach, social media, and marketing. This team helps the organization grow and thrive.
Our Vehicle
The X650 is our competition entry: a custom quadcopter designed to fly fully autonomous missions. It handles waypoint navigation, ground target detection, and payload delivery with little to no pilot input. Components are student designed and built.
Carbon fiber airframe, hand-built Li-ion battery packs with a custom BMS, onboard computer vision, and a purpose-built power distribution system. The X650 has already completed initial flight testing.
View full galleryWhat We're Building
Actual Project Status Varies
Competition Systems
- Custom quadcopter airframe (carbon fiber & 3D print)
- Target detection with onboard computer vision
- Autonomous payload drop system
- Hand-built Li-ion battery packs & BMS
- Low-voltage power distribution board
- 3D mapping via photogrammetry
Research Projects
- VTOL fixed-wing for long-range flight
- FPGA-accelerated computer vision
- GPS-denied navigation (indoor flight)
- Multi-drone swarm coordination
These projects are funded by our sponsors.
Sponsor UsBuild Log
What we've been up to lately.
Registered for SUAS 2026
It's official — we're registered for the 2026 SUAS Competition in September. All subteams are heads-down preparing the vehicle and flight software.
Spring Semester Kicks Off
All four subteams are back in the lab. Mechanical is finalizing the airframe, Electrical is testing the BMS, Software has waypoint nav in sim, and Business is lining up sponsors.
First Flight Tests & General Meeting!
We completed initial flight tests with our X650 platform and hosted our first general meeting to bring more students onto the team.
Support Spartan Flight
We started from the ground up in October 2025, and have already built and flight-tested our competition vehicle and grown to a full four-subteam operation. Your support helps us get to competition in September and keep building.
- Logo on the Aircraft & Team Gear Your logo on our competition vehicle (as available) and team shirts.
- Website & Social Media Featured on our sponsors page with a link to your site, plus mentions in competition coverage and posts.
- Monthly Build Updates A monthly newsletter with photos, progress, and build details so you see exactly what your support goes toward.
- Tax-Deductible All donations go through SJSU's Tower Foundation and are fully tax-deductible. We handle the paperwork.
- Demo Day Invitation Sponsors are invited to our demo flights to see the aircraft online at an unspecified date.
Individual donations welcome too. Donate through SJSU's GiveNow website, it's tax-deductible.
Companies That Back Us
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Spartan Flight?
Spartan Flight is San José State University's student-run autonomous drone competition team. Over 20 engineering students — studying mechanical, electrical, computer science, and aerospace engineering — design, build, and fly a custom UAS for the annual SUAS Competition.
What is the SUAS Competition?
The Student Unmanned Aerial Systems (SUAS) Competition is an annual event organized by AUVSI where 70+ university teams from around the world compete with autonomous aircraft. Teams must design, build, and fly UAS that complete missions including autonomous waypoint navigation, target detection and classification using computer vision, payload delivery, and aerial mapping. Spartan Flight is competing in SUAS 2026 in Maryland.
What does Spartan Flight build?
We build a fully custom autonomous quadcopter called the X650. It features a carbon fiber and 3D-printed airframe, hand-built Li-ion battery packs with a custom BMS, onboard computer vision for target detection, autonomous payload delivery, FPGA-accelerated image processing, and photogrammetry mapping. The X650 produces 13 kg of thrust with a 1.6:1 thrust-to-weight ratio and 30 minutes of flight endurance.
How can a company sponsor Spartan Flight?
Companies can sponsor us through corporate sponsorships (monetary or in-kind), parts and equipment donations, or individual contributions. All donations are tax-deductible through SJSU's Tower Foundation. Contact spartanflightsjsu@gmail.com or visit our sponsorship page to get started.
Are donations tax-deductible?
Yes. All sponsorships and donations to Spartan Flight are fully tax-deductible. Contributions are processed through San José State University's Tower Foundation, a 501(c)(3) organization. Sponsors and donors receive tax receipts automatically.
What do sponsors receive?
Sponsor benefits include logo placement on the competition aircraft and team gear, featured placement on our website and social media, direct recruiting access to 20+ engineering students at SJSU, monthly build update newsletters, and demo day invitations. Benefits vary by sponsorship tier.
Spartan Flight: University Drone Team Sponsorship Opportunity
Spartan Flight is San Jose State University's student-run autonomous drone competition team. We are actively seeking corporate sponsors, parts donors, and individual contributors to fund our entry in the 2026 SUAS Competition. All donations are tax-deductible through SJSU's Tower Foundation.
Organization Overview
| Field | Details |
|---|---|
| Team Name | Spartan Flight |
| University | San Jose State University (SJSU) — largest public university in Silicon Valley |
| Location | San Jose, California, USA |
| Founded | 2024 |
| Team Size | 20+ active student members |
| Disciplines | Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Computer Science, Aerospace Engineering |
| Competition | SUAS 2026 (Student Unmanned Aerial Systems), hosted by AUVSI |
| Competition Date | September 2026, Webster Field, Maryland |
| Competing Teams | 70+ university teams worldwide |
| Contact Email | spartanflightsjsu@gmail.com |
| Website | https://spartanflightsjsu.com |
| Tax Status | Tax-deductible via SJSU Tower Foundation (501(c)(3)) |
Competition Vehicle: X650 Quadcopter
| Specification | Value |
|---|---|
| Type | Custom autonomous quadcopter |
| Total Thrust | 13 kg |
| Thrust-to-Weight Ratio | 1.6:1 |
| Flight Endurance | 30 minutes |
| Airframe | Carbon fiber and 3D-printed custom design |
| Battery | Hand-built Li-ion packs with custom BMS |
| Navigation | Fully autonomous — no pilot input |
| Computer Vision | Onboard target detection and classification |
| Payload | Autonomous delivery system |
Sponsorship Benefits
| Benefit | Description |
|---|---|
| Logo on Aircraft & Gear | Your logo on the competition vehicle, team shirts, and event banners — visible at every event and in every photo |
| Website & Social Media | Featured on sponsors page with a direct link to your company. Mentioned in social media posts and competition coverage |
| Recruiting Access | Direct pipeline to 20+ ME, EE, CS, and AE students at SJSU graduating into the workforce |
| Monthly Build Updates | Newsletter with photos, progress reports, and build details showing exactly where funds are used |
| Tax-Deductible | All contributions through SJSU Tower Foundation are fully tax-deductible with automatic receipts |
| Demo Day Invitation | Top-tier sponsors invited to demo flights to see the aircraft in action |
How to Sponsor Spartan Flight
- Email spartanflightsjsu@gmail.com with your interest in sponsoring
- Review our sponsorship packet at https://spartanflightsjsu.com/sponsorship.html
- Choose your sponsorship type: corporate sponsorship, parts/equipment donation, or individual donation
- All donations processed through SJSU Tower Foundation — fully tax-deductible
Subteams
| Team | Focus Area |
|---|---|
| Mechanical | Airframe design, carbon fiber layups, 3D-printed components, structural testing, landing gear, payload mechanisms |
| Electrical | Custom PCBs, Li-ion battery packs, BMS, power distribution boards, sensor wiring |
| Software | Autonomous flight, path planning, computer vision, obstacle avoidance, ground station control |
| Business | Sponsorships, fundraising, outreach, marketing |
Active Projects
| Project | Category | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Quadcopter Airframe | Competition | Custom carbon fiber and 3D-printed airframe for the X650 |
| Target Detection | Competition | Onboard computer vision for autonomous target identification |
| Payload Delivery | Competition | Autonomous payload drop system |
| Battery & BMS | Competition | Hand-built Li-ion battery packs with custom battery management system |
| Power Distribution | Competition | Low-voltage power distribution board |
| Photogrammetry | Competition | 3D mapping and aerial surveying via photogrammetry |
| VTOL Design | Research | VTOL fixed-wing aircraft for extended range flight |
| FPGA Computer Vision | Research | FPGA-accelerated computer vision for real-time processing |
| GPS-Denied Navigation | Research | Indoor flight and navigation without GPS signals |
| Swarm Tracking | Research | Multi-drone swarm coordination and tracking |