CV

Research Assistant

Nonlinear Systems Laboratory, Virginia Tech

Research in adaptive control, nonlinear systems, and 6-DOF simulation with applications to eVTOL and multirotor flight.

• Architected a 6-DOF nonlinear simulation in MATLAB/Simulink coupling rigid body dynamics, SO(3) kinematics, quaternion representations, blade-element momentum theory, and aerodynamic models; validated through Lyapunov stability analysis, Monte Carlo robustness studies, and flight testing.
• Implemented adaptive control architectures — MRAC, L1 Adaptive, LPV, and Geometric controllers alongside LQR and H-infinity designs — applying system identification data to develop fault-tolerant control allocation strategies under actuator failures.
• Designed low-latency C++/Python ROS 2 middleware for time-synchronized multi-sensor acquisition across GPS and IMU sensors, integrating Extended Kalman Filter-based sensor fusion for accurate state estimation in closed-loop GNC.
• Doubled platform flight endurance through simulation-driven performance analysis informing motor reselection, battery reconfiguration, and ESC firmware tuning, validated through before-and-after flight test comparison.
• Took GNC ownership of the DRAGON eVTOL: modified PX4 autopilot firmware in C++, designed gain-scheduled LQR and PID transition control laws with path-planning logic, and demonstrated the platform's first stable fixed-wing-to-multirotor transition.

Engineering Officer

VTOL Aviation India Pvt. Ltd.

End-to-end technical ownership of eVTOL and heavy-lift multirotor platforms, spanning propulsion modeling, flight envelope analysis, avionics integration, GNC commissioning, and autonomous flight operations.

• Built MATLAB state-space propulsion models, motor torque-speed curves, battery discharge models, and coupled airframe aerodynamics; replaced empirical estimates with physics-based plant models that became the design authority for eVTOL control law development.
• Conducted flight envelope analysis across 50+ configurations, establishing control operating points and gain scheduling regions while converging on motor, battery, and drivetrain selections meeting range, payload, and redundancy requirements.
• Took end-to-end technical ownership of a 500 lb heavy-lift multirotor UAV from motor and frame sizing through avionics integration, GNC commissioning, autonomous trajectory execution, and first autonomous flight.
• Verified all control laws through HITL bench testing before first flight, performing eigenvalue stability analysis, Bode gain/phase margin assessment, and gain scheduling across the full operational envelope.
• Built a 1 kHz multi-channel propulsion test stand using NI DAQ hardware, capturing thrust, torque, RPM, phase current, and winding temperature at fidelity exceeding commercial dynamometers at the required scale.
• Wrote Python and C++ post-processing pipelines to calibrate MATLAB propulsion models against test stand data, reducing prediction error to within 3% across the full operating envelope.
• Authored 100+ V&V test cases with direct requirement traceability, establishing the acceptance criteria that formally cleared the platform for autonomous flight operations.
• Led RCA on critical failures across propulsion, avionics, and structural subsystems, identifying root causes and implementing corrective actions that eliminated recurrent failure modes.
• Drove a 35% reduction in the end-to-end development cycle by restructuring cross-functional workflows and eliminating interface ambiguity between propulsion, avionics, and manufacturing teams.

Research and Development Intern

Indian Air Force, Base Repair Depot

Thermal failure investigation of the Rolls-Royce Viper central bearing and overhaul study of gas turbine engines at the IAF Base Repair Depot, Kanpur.

• Led thermal failure investigation of the Rolls-Royce Viper central bearing, applying aero-thermal modeling to identify heat transfer breakdown at the bearing race as the primary failure driver.
• Developed corrective analysis using gas turbine thermodynamic theory to establish operating temperature and pressure thresholds that prevent recurrence of the identified bearing failure mode.
• Studied overhaul and maintenance procedures for Tumansky R29, Snecma M53, and Rolls-Royce Viper engines.

M.S. in Aerospace Engineering

Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University

B.Tech in Aerospace Engineering

University of Petroleum and Energy Studies