4 Tools I Wish I Knew When I Started Aerospace Engineering
Looking back, there are a few tools that could have saved me months of trial and error — and dramatically improved how I approached engineering problems.
If you're just starting out, or even if you're already working in aerospace, learning to master these 4 tools can be the difference between being just “good enough” and being the person every team wants to have.
In this article, I’ll show you the full A-to-Z process of analyzing a 3D wing, using the four tools I wish I had learned much earlier.
Tool #1 – CAD: SolidWorks for 3D Geometry Creation
Everything starts with geometry.
Being able to create accurate and clean 3D models is the foundation of any aerospace simulation. And no, downloading models from GrabCAD doesn't count as engineering.
Why SolidWorks?
It lets you parametrize profiles, airfoils, wing spans, dihedral angles, and twist with full control.
It’s fast, reliable, and used in both industry and academia.
You can export directly to formats compatible with simulation tools like SpaceClaim and ANSYS.
Example:
I started from a 2D airfoil (NACA profile), lofted it between two sections to create a 3D tapered wing, and added slight twist to simulate washout. It took 10 minutes — and now I had something real to analyze.
Tool #2 – CFD: ANSYS Fluent for Aerodynamic Simulation
Once the geometry is ready, you move to computational fluid dynamics — where the air meets math.
The process isn't just hitting "simulate."
It’s a structured pipeline:
Import CAD into SpaceClaim: Clean up the geometry, remove small features, and create the fluid volume (the air around the wing).
Meshing: Using ANSYS Meshing tools, create a high-quality mesh with inflation layers and boundary refinement.
Simulation setup in Fluent: Define boundary conditions (inlet, outlet, wall), choose turbulence models (k-ω SST or similar), and run the solver.
Why it matters:
Being able to run your own CFD simulation is like getting x-ray vision into aerodynamics.
You’re no longer guessing — you’re testing.
Bonus tip:
Use named selections and symmetry planes to simplify the domain and reduce computation time.
Tool #3 – Validation & Visualization: Fluent Post-Processing
A simulation is only useful if you know what to do with the results.
This is where post-processing comes in.
Fluent allows you to visualize:
Pressure and velocity fields
Streamlines and vortex formation
Forces and moments over surfaces
Cp plots along chord lines
Flow separation points
Example:
In one simulation, I noticed asymmetric flow separation near the wing tip — something invisible in hand calculations.
Post-processing helped me redesign the winglet shape to reduce induced drag.
This is the step that turns numbers into insights — and separates a good engineer from a great one.
Tool #4 – Coding: Python + Visual Studio for Engineering Automation
Knowing how to code isn’t just for computer scientists.
Python is becoming a must-have skill in aerospace — whether you’re optimizing shapes, batch-running simulations, or automating post-processing.
What I use:
Visual Studio Code with Python extensions
Numpy, Matplotlib for data analysis and plotting
Pandas for structured post-processing of results
Custom scripts to rename files, organize cases, extract forces and compare performance
Don’t know how to code?
Use ChatGPT to help you get started. You don’t need to be a full-stack developer — you just need to speak the language of automation.
Example:
I wrote a Python script that takes four simulation folders, extracts lift and drag from each, computes L/D ratios, and plots them on a single chart.
That script saved me 2 hours of manual work — every time.
Final Thoughts
Learning these four tools — CAD, CFD, Validation, and Coding — is what took me from "good at math" to actually solving real engineering problems.
They form the end-to-end pipeline:
From idea → to design → to simulation → to insight.
🔧 And in my latest YouTube video, I show you all four tools step by step:
how I build a 3D wing, simulate it in Fluent, analyze the results, and use Python + ChatGPT to compare four different wings — and figure out which one has the best aerodynamic efficiency.
👉 Watch the video here
