{"694026":{"#nid":"694026","#data":{"type":"news","title":"Aerospace Student Designs Record-Breaking RC Jet","body":[{"value":"\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cp\u003ETomas Salvo was 8 years old, growing up in Singapore, when he built his first remote-controlled plane. Now a fourth-year aerospace engineering student, his interest in planes and desire to innovate led him to build what could be the world\u2019s fastest RC jet.\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cp\u003EOn Oct. 27, Salvo and his team conducted their latest test of the Reaper project \u2014 a plane initially designed in his dorm room. During the test, the jet demonstrated the ability to reach 790 kilometers per hour. Although unofficial, the speed surpassed the current record of 465.544 set by Niels Herbrich of Rothenburg, Germany, in 2017.\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cp\u003ESalvo began the Reaper project in February after reconstructing an engine left behind by a student organization on campus. Though the group later reclaimed its engine, Salvo knew he could recreate the design and reached out to potential sponsors on social media with his vision. Within a month, he bought supplies to build the plane, the Jetcat P250 engine, and the railing needed to launch. Using the Aerospace Machine Shop and the CNC mill in the Invention Studio, Salvo cut the custom molds and crafted the aircraft\u0027s carbon fiber ribs.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThis summer, he tested the craft while living in California for an internship with Skydio, an autonomous drone manufacturer. After a long day of testing in July, Salvo\u2019s girlfriend posted Reaper\u2019s flight on X before going to sleep. He woke up to the post gaining millions of views overnight. The post, which has now reached over 5.4 million users, changed his life in an instant and helped him realize the potential of his project.\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cI woke up with messages from people in Ukraine asking if I could ship them, could we make more, how fast can it go, range, payload, and things of that nature,\u201d he said. The post \u201cdid everything for me. Since then, investors have found me and asked what they can do to help.\u201d\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cp\u003ESince then, Salvo has been testing Reaper with payloads to simulate performance as a jet-powered drone interceptor. He claims the project is the fastest drone at its price point in the world and hopes to one day provide a defense solution that can combat drones in war zones.\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cp\u003EAs a child, he enjoyed taking the planes and helicopters his parents bought for him apart, putting them back together, and fixing what was broken. Today, as he refines his design, he approaches each test with the same mindset: ready to tackle whatever comes his way.\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cThings won\u0027t always go right, and that\u2019s how we make our design better: by learning from that,\u201d he said.\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cp\u003ESince his first test, Salvo and the team have modified the plane\u2019s inlet and leading edges and implemented new avionics and new engine telemetry, making it more reliable at high speeds. He continues to iterate on the Reaper design, and after launching his first commercially viable aircraft, he intends to develop a supersonic aircraft in the coming months that he says may feature propulsion technology never before seen on a drone this size.\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E","summary":"","format":"limited_html"}],"field_subtitle":[{"value":"Designed in a dorm room and assembled in Georgia Tech makerspaces, the Reaper jet has the potential to break records.  "}],"field_summary":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EDesigned in a dorm room and assembled in Georgia Tech makerspaces, the Reaper jet has the potential to break records.\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"field_summary_sentence":[{"value":"Designed in a dorm room and assembled in Georgia Tech makerspaces, the Reaper jet has the potential to break records.  "}],"uid":"36418","created_gmt":"2026-11-11 20:23:17","changed_gmt":"2026-11-12 14:49:00","author":"sgagliano3","boilerplate_text":"","field_publication":"","field_article_url":"","location":"Atlanta, GA","dateline":{"date":"2026-11-11T00:00:00-05:00","iso_date":"2026-11-11T00:00:00-05:00","tz":"America\/New_York"},"extras":[],"hg_media":{"681766":{"id":"681766","type":"video","title":"Georgia Tech student designs world\u0027s fastest RC jet from his dorm room","body":"\u003Cp\u003ETomas Salvo used the makerspaces on Georgia Tech\u0027s campus to help build the fastest remote control jet in the world \u2014 capable of reaching speeds over 500 mph.\u003C\/p\u003E","created":"1794447329","gmt_created":"2026-11-12 01:35:29","changed":"1794447329","gmt_changed":"2026-11-12 01:35:29","video":{"youtube_id":"bPKm86t6vRw","video_url":"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=bPKm86t6vRw"}},"681756":{"id":"681756","type":"image","title":"Tomas Salvo RC Jet","body":"\u003Cp\u003EGeorgia Tech aerospace engineering student Tomas Salvo stands beside the Reaper RC jet prior to testing.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E","created":"1794428856","gmt_created":"2026-11-11 20:27:36","changed":"1794428856","gmt_changed":"2026-11-11 20:27:36","alt":"Tomas Salvo","file":{"fid":"266208","name":"Screenshot-2026-11-11-at-3.25.59-PM.png","image_path":"\/sites\/default\/files\/2026\/11\/11\/Screenshot-2026-11-11-at-3.25.59-PM.png","image_full_path":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/\/sites\/default\/files\/2026\/11\/11\/Screenshot-2026-11-11-at-3.25.59-PM.png","mime":"image\/png","size":4671167,"path_740":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/740xx_scale\/public\/2026\/11\/11\/Screenshot-2026-11-11-at-3.25.59-PM.png?itok=sKFx6iSd"}},"681757":{"id":"681757","type":"image","title":"Reaper","body":"\u003Cp\u003EThe Reaper RC jet in flight during Salvo\u0027s most recent round of testing.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E","created":"1794428990","gmt_created":"2026-11-11 20:29:50","changed":"1794428990","gmt_changed":"2026-11-11 20:29:50","alt":"Reaper RC jet ","file":{"fid":"266209","name":"Screenshot-2026-11-10-at-3.56.53-PM.png","image_path":"\/sites\/default\/files\/2026\/11\/11\/Screenshot-2026-11-10-at-3.56.53-PM.png","image_full_path":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/\/sites\/default\/files\/2026\/11\/11\/Screenshot-2026-11-10-at-3.56.53-PM.png","mime":"image\/png","size":3516359,"path_740":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/740xx_scale\/public\/2026\/11\/11\/Screenshot-2026-11-10-at-3.56.53-PM.png?itok=BK1K5fmM"}},"681758":{"id":"681758","type":"image","title":"Salvo and Team","body":"\u003Cp\u003ETomas Salvo piloting the Reaper RC jet with his teammates looking on.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E","created":"1794429051","gmt_created":"2026-11-11 20:30:51","changed":"1794429051","gmt_changed":"2026-11-11 20:30:51","alt":"Tomas Salvo and his team","file":{"fid":"266210","name":"DSC00842.JPG","image_path":"\/sites\/default\/files\/2026\/11\/11\/DSC00842.JPG","image_full_path":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/\/sites\/default\/files\/2026\/11\/11\/DSC00842.JPG","mime":"image\/jpeg","size":8346315,"path_740":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/740xx_scale\/public\/2026\/11\/11\/DSC00842.JPG?itok=hOpWifZ4"}}},"media_ids":["681766","681756","681757","681758"],"groups":[{"id":"1214","name":"News Room"}],"categories":[{"id":"136","name":"Aerospace"}],"keywords":[{"id":"187353","name":"drone"},{"id":"2082","name":"aerospace engineering"},{"id":"186358","name":"airplanes"}],"core_research_areas":[{"id":"193658","name":"Commercialization"}],"news_room_topics":[{"id":"71871","name":"Campus and Community"}],"event_categories":[],"invited_audience":[],"affiliations":[],"classification":[],"areas_of_expertise":[],"news_and_recent_appearances":[],"phone":[],"contact":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003E\u003Ca href=\u0022mailto:Steven.gagliano@gatech.edu\u0022\u003ESteven Gagliano\u003C\/a\u003E \u2013 Institute Communications\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"email":[],"slides":[],"orientation":[],"userdata":""}}}