NIBONG TEBAL, April 11 — A team of 10 students from Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) is set to take Malaysian innovation to new heights as they prepare to compete in the International Rocket Engineering Competition 2026 (IREC 2026) in Midland, Texas, United States from June 15 to 20.

Known as WAU Rocketry USM, the team will represent Malaysia alongside another team from Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) at one of the world’s largest intercollegiate rocketry competitions, which bring together students from around the world to design, build and launch rockets.

In an exclusive interview with Bernama, the team leader P. Vymarleena Avriel, 23, said their APEX-1 rocket is designed to ascend 10,000 feet into the air, competing in the Commercial Off The Shelf (COTS) category.

Unlike large-scale launch vehicles developed by agencies such as National Aeronautics and Space Administration (Nasa) or SpaceX, she explained that the APEX-1 is a high-powered sounding rocket, a more compact system suitable for academic engineering competitions, yet still demanding rigorous design, simulation and testing.

“IREC 2026 is actually an engineering competition but it is for to launch rockets and we have students worldwide that participate in the competition. We launch a rocket and compete.

“I would say with my team and our current progress from the technical and engineering side, I am really confident and hoping to get at least a top five result but we can achieve even more,” she told Bernama at the School of Aerospace Engineering, Engineering Campus, USM here.

As the only female member of the team, Vymarleena Avriel shared that the journey to IREC has taken nearly a year, beginning with a fully online application process that required detailed computer-aided design (CAD), simulations and technical reports.

She added that the competition involves multiple evaluation phases, including the Preliminary Design Report (PDR), Critical Design Review (CDR) and the Flight Readiness Review (FRR), before teams are cleared for launch.

The third-year Aerospace Engineering student said balancing academic commitments with the project has been one of the team’s biggest challenges.

“Most of us are third-year students with packed schedules, so we work overnight and spend long hours in the lab, even during semester breaks, we stayed on campus to continue building the rocket,” she added.

Beyond technical hurdles, she said financial constraints remain a significant obstacle, thus the team has actively reached out to sponsors, government agencies and industry players, securing partial funding while continuing efforts to cover remaining costs.

“As a student team, funding is one of our biggest challenges, not just for the rocket components but also for travel to the US,” said Vymarleena  Avriel, who aspires to become an astronaut.

Due to regulatory restrictions in Malaysia, she also said the rocket will be assembled locally, disassembled for transport and reassembled in the US, where the motor classified under strict regulations and will be integrated before launch.

Meanwhile, the project supervisor Dr Chang Wei Shyang commended the team’s discipline and progress, noting that participation in competitions like IREC offers value beyond academics.

“We won seventh place in 2022 and competed again in 2023, but unfortunately unable to send teams after that due to financial issues and challenges to actually get the bright students into the team to continue.

“However, this new batch really have the fire to continue. I can see that the rocket is almost ready and consistently meet their deadlines without needing reminders, I think this speaks for itself how disciplined they are in this particular endeavour,” he said.

Chang, a lecturer at USM’s School of Aerospace Engineering, said the team’s achievement showcases the capabilities of Malaysian students and demonstrates that the country can compete with leading universities globally, reflecting national progress in technology.

He also highlighted growing interest in aerospace among Malaysian students, with increasing enrolment and industry opportunities, including over 300 aerospace-related companies nationwide.

For the record, WAU Rocketry USM previously secured third place in the A4 International Category at the Teknofest 2025 Rocket Competition in Aksaray, Turkey, following the successful launch of their Hebat-3 rocket.

Six members including Vymarleena Avriel, participated in an international mobility programme at Hochschule Stralsund, Germany, gaining hands-on experience in hybrid rocket engine manufacturing.

Besides Vymarleena Avriel, the other team members are Lim Wiky, 25; Danish Irfan Saiful Nizam, 21; R. Krishna Baniel, 22; Aizad Aizal Abdul Aziz, 22; K. Aditteya, 22, Muhammad Hafiz Hakimy Gazali, 22; Muhammad Farhat Mohd Sharipa, 22; M. Saravanan, 22 and S. Loganraj, 22. — Bernama