Jester,

Great advice. Teaming with a club is a good idea.

Note that, according to the rules, the pilot who flies the plane is required to be an AMA member.

From the rules:

All team members (except for a non-student pilot) must be full time students at an accredited University or College and student members of the AIAA. At least 1/3 of the team members must consist of Freshman, Sophomores or Juniors. The pilot must be an AMA (Academy of Model Aeronautics) member. Teams may use a non-university member for the pilot if desired. We will provide qualified pilots at the contest on an as-available basis to assist teams who are unable to have their pilot attend.

Hopefully the team will have at least one member who is a qualified RC pilot who will be working with them every step of the way to test the designs. If not then they are headed for disaster.