Darren Finn Forschino
Aerospace Engineer · Mechanical Design · Thermal Analysis
Active U.S. Top Secret Clearance
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Norwalk, CT
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203-451-1119
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darrenforschino@gmail.com
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LinkedIn
Early-career aerospace engineer with Northrop Grumman experience developing mechanical designs and thermal analyses for airborne electronics hardware, complemented by hands-on high-power rocket design, integration, and flight testing.
Education
Syracuse University — Syracuse, NY
MAY 2026
B.S. Aerospace Engineering · Minor in Computer Science
GPA: 3.6
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Dean's List: 7 semesters
Relevant Coursework
Propulsion · Thermodynamics · Aircraft Performance · Fluid Mechanics · Aerodynamics · Aerospace Structures · Control Systems
Engineering
Experience
Experience
Mechanical Engineering Intern
MAY 2024 — PRESENT
Northrop Grumman Aeronautics Systems — El Segundo, CA
- →Designed a two-part conduction-cooled electronics cover assembly in Siemens NX, executing the full CAD workflow from concept and mechanical interfaces through design revisions.
- →Built the thermal model from scratch in Simcenter Thermal, including analysis geometry, meshing, materials, contacts, heat loads, and boundary conditions, and iterated the mechanical design across 6+ cycles using first-principles reasoning and FEA results.
- →Produced three part and assembly drawings and worked with manufacturing to resolve tolerance and machinability issues, revising geometry to improve manufacturability.
- →Presented and defended the design in engineering reviews and closed resulting action items. During physical integration, identified an assembly-level form/fit discrepancy between analysis geometry and as-built hardware and corrected the model.
Engineering
Project
Project
High-Power Rocket — Senior Design Capstone
JAN 2026 — MAY 2026
Syracuse University — Syracuse, NY
- →Designed the avionics pod, motor casing, and motor-retention hardware, and contributed heavily to a subscale aft control fin system, working within packaging, mass, and budget constraints for a ~10,000-ft target vehicle.
- →Packaged and bench-tested the avionics stack (Teensy 4.1, IMU, barometer, transceiver, independent BlueJay altimeter), integrating sensors, wiring, and data acquisition for flight.
- →Performed extensive hardware assembly and recovery-system integration across ~12 ground tests, two subscale flight tests, and one full-scale flight test. Investigated a subscale recovery failure, identified thermal damage during ejection, and implemented corrective changes validated on the subsequent flight.
- →Analyzed post-flight altitude, velocity, acceleration, and trajectory data in MATLAB and Excel to consolidate results and inform subsequent design iteration.
Technical
Skills
Skills
CAD & Analysis
Siemens NX · Simcenter Thermal · SolidWorks · MATLAB · Excel · OpenRocket
Mechanical
Mechanical design · Thermal analysis · FEA · Engineering drawings · Tolerance analysis · DFM · Electronics packaging · Hardware integration
Test & Hardware
Flight testing · Bench testing · Test-data analysis · Avionics integration · Sensor integration · Basic soldering
Programming
Java · Python · Arduino / Teensy · Git