Zehao Rong
The sky isn't a limit; it's a frontier.
About Me
I am a Powerplant Engineer at Gulfstream Aerospace and a recent Aerospace Engineering graduate from UCLA with passion for aeronautical design, product development, and building the future of general aviation.
At UCLA, I worked on and led many design teams. As the President of AIAA (American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics) and Project Manager of Design Build Fly at UCLA, I gained experience in technical project leadership and interdisciplinary teamwork alongside strong time management and communication skills. Having designed and built an array of different aircraft, rockets, drones, underwater vehicles, and a variety of other aerospace and robotics systems, I earned expertise in CAD (Catia V5, SolidWorks, Fusion 360), prototyping (FDM 3D Printing, Arduino, test design, data analysis), simulation (MATLAB, ANSYS Fluent CFD, Python), as well as aeronautical design principles (aerodynamics, structural analysis, propulsion systems, avionics, flight performance analysis). My best achievement was leading our Design Build Fly team to a historic best for UCLA, finishing at 15th out of 135 university teams in an international competition for aircraft design, manufacturing, and flight.
At Gulfstream Aerospace, I am further developing my skills in aeronautical design by working on challenges across new and sustaining programs. At the same time, I am gaining airworthiness certification experience under Title 14 CFR Part 25, Part 91, and Part 135.
In the long term, I am looking to use my proficiency in both aeronautical design and airworthiness certification in order to increase the public accessibility and environmental sustainability of general aviation.
At UCLA, I worked on and led many design teams. As the President of AIAA (American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics) and Project Manager of Design Build Fly at UCLA, I gained experience in technical project leadership and interdisciplinary teamwork alongside strong time management and communication skills. Having designed and built an array of different aircraft, rockets, drones, underwater vehicles, and a variety of other aerospace and robotics systems, I earned expertise in CAD (Catia V5, SolidWorks, Fusion 360), prototyping (FDM 3D Printing, Arduino, test design, data analysis), simulation (MATLAB, ANSYS Fluent CFD, Python), as well as aeronautical design principles (aerodynamics, structural analysis, propulsion systems, avionics, flight performance analysis). My best achievement was leading our Design Build Fly team to a historic best for UCLA, finishing at 15th out of 135 university teams in an international competition for aircraft design, manufacturing, and flight.
At Gulfstream Aerospace, I am further developing my skills in aeronautical design by working on challenges across new and sustaining programs. At the same time, I am gaining airworthiness certification experience under Title 14 CFR Part 25, Part 91, and Part 135.
In the long term, I am looking to use my proficiency in both aeronautical design and airworthiness certification in order to increase the public accessibility and environmental sustainability of general aviation.
My Skills
My Experiences
Engine Powerplant Systems Engineer at Gulfstream Aerospace Corp.
2023-Present
President of American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) at UCLA
Project Manager of Design Build Fly (DBF) at UCLA
2022-2023
Internal Vice President of American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) at UCLA
Vice Project Manager of Design Build Fly (DBF) at UCLA
Autonomous Underwater Vehicle (AUV) Lead of Bruin Underwater Robotics (BUR)
Mechanical Airframe Engineer of Uncrewed Aerial Systems (UAS) at UCLA
2021-2022
Aerodynamics and CAD Engineer of Design Build Fly (DBF) at UCLA
Research Engineer of Bruin Underwater Robotics (BUR)
Mechanical Airframe Engineer of Uncrewed Aerial Systems (UAS) at UCLA
2020-2021
Software Co-Lead of FIRST Robotics at Glendora High School
2019-2020
AIAA at UCLA
DBF at UCLA
UAS at UCLA
