NASA\u00a0has\u00a0selected\u00a0eight\u00a0student\u00a0teams as finalists in the 2026 Gateways to Blue Skies\u00a0Competition, giving them the resources to help address\u00a0a critical challenge\u00a0for\u00a0U.S. aviation:\u00a0maintenance.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Challenges facing the commercial aviation industry include a shortage of qualified maintenance workers and increasing demands to keep complicated\u00a0aircraft\u00a0running for longer. With Gateways to Blue Skies,\u00a0NASA\u00a0taps into student innovation to address some of the biggest topics in aviation, and the current competition,\u00a0RepAir: Advancing Aircraft Maintenance, is looking for solutions that can have immediate impact.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThrough this competition, students will learn about\u00a0aviation\u00a0maintenance and be empowered to change its future,\u201d\u00a0said Steven\u00a0Holz,\u00a0associate\u00a0project\u00a0manager for NASA\u2019s University Innovation Project and judging panel co-chair for Gateways to Blue Skies. \u201cBy grounding innovative ideas in real operational needs and presenting them to NASA and industry experts, these teams demonstrate the kind of critical thinking, collaboration, and forward-looking problem solving that will shape\u00a0a\u00a0safer, more efficient aviation\u00a0industry\u00a0in the near future.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
This competition challenged teams of\u00a0postsecondary\u00a0students to conceptualize innovative systems and practices that could advance current commercial\u00a0aircraft\u00a0maintenance and repair operations.\u00a0It addresses dual goals\u00a0for NASA: supporting\u00a0innovative research\u00a0and\u00a0also\u00a0stimulating the potential\u00a0aviation workforce of tomorrow.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The\u00a0goal\u00a0for\u00a0RepAir:\u00a0Advancing Aircraft Maintenance\u00a0is to generate concepts to improve efficiency, safety, and costs for the\u00a0aviation maintenance\u00a0industry by 2035.\u00a0That timeline\u00a0differs from\u00a0many NASA research competitions focused on\u00a0long-term\u00a0future technologies;\u00a0RepAir\u00a0seeks\u00a0to address the maintenance issues of today.\u00a0<\/p>\n
NASA made its\u00a0selections\u00a0based on a review of\u00a0participants\u2019\u00a0proposals and accompanying videos summarizing the RepAir concepts.\u00a0The eight finalist teams will receive a $9,000 prize and will advance to Phase 2 of the competition.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
Phase 2 includes a review of each team\u2019s final paper, infographic, and presentation at\u00a0the 2026 Gateways to Blue Skies Forum, held May 18\u00a0at NASA Langley\u00a0Research Center in Hampton, Virginia\u00a0in May\u00a0and\u00a0livestreamed globally<\/a>.\u00a0Following the forum, members of the winning team who fulfill eligibility criteria will be offered the opportunity to intern with NASA Aeronautics.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n The 2026 Gateways to Blue Skies Competition finalist projects represent an array of capabilities including\u00a0robotic inspections, augmented reality smart glasses, and sensor and machine learning architectures:\u00a0<\/p>\n Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University Daytona Beach with Cecil College Maryland\u00a0 South Dakota State University\u00a0\u00a0 University of California, Irvine\u00a0\u00a0 The Gateways to Blue\u00a0Skies Challenge is\u00a0led\u00a0through the Transformative Aeronautics Concepts Program in NASA\u2019s\u00a0Aeronautics Research Mission Directorate<\/a>.\u00a0The NASA Tournament Lab, part of the\u00a0Prizes, Challenges, and Crowdsourcing Program<\/a>\u00a0in the Space Technology Mission Directorate, manages the challenge\u00a0through\u00a0the National Institute of Aerospace\u00a0on behalf of\u00a0NASA<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Advancing Aircraft Maintenance, Smart Mechanic Glasses\u00a0
\nManhattan University\u00a0\u00a0
Aircraft Enhanced Resilience and Intelligence Systems\u00a0(A.E.R.I.S)\u00a0
\nMichigan State University\u00a0\u00a0
Surface Evaluation Network for Tethered Inspection and Nondestructive Evaluation (SENTINEL)\u00a0
\nSouth Dakota State University\u00a0\u00a0
Surveying Platform and Inspection Device for Enclosed Regions (S.P.I.D.E.R.)\u00a0
\nSouth Dakota State University\u00a0\u00a0
WINGMAN,\u00a0augmented\u00a0reality data-logging and information-display system for improved efficiency in line maintenance inspections and reporting\u00a0<\/p>\n
Surface Preservation and Rust Killer (S.P.A.R.K.)\u00a0Crawler\u00a0<\/p>\n
Aircraft Structural\u00a0Health Intelligence for Evaluation and Lifecycle Detection\u00a0(Air SHIELD)\u00a0
\nUniversity of Maryland Eastern Shore\u00a0
A Self-Supervised Learning Framework for\u00a0Auxiliary Power Unit\u00a0(APU)\u00a0Fuel Control Unit Health Management in Aircraft\u00a0known as APU Sentinel\u00a0<\/p>\n