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Welcome and Introduce Yourself

Welcome to the Aerospace discussion page on Engineering Communities!

This is a thread to introduce yourself to your fellow network members. We’d love to hear more about you so here are a few questions to start you off:
 
Name:
Brief career history:
What interests you about Aerospace
Other interests:




  • Former Community Member
    0 Former Community Member
    Hello everyone! My name is Nektarios Karanikas and I am glad to be member of this very active and future-looking group, and especially being an executive member of the TPN!


    Few words about myself: Since 2014 I have apointed as Associate Professor of Safety and Human Factors at the Aviation Academy of the Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences. I studied MSc Human Factors and Safety Assessment in Aeronautics at Cranfield University (UK) and I was awarded my doctorate in Safety and Quality Management from Middlesex University (UK). I graduated from the Hellenic Air Force Academy as aeronautical engineer, worked for 18 years as military officer at the Hellenic Air Force and resigned in 2014 with the rank of Lt. Colonel. There, I served in various positions related to maintenance and quality management and accident investigation, and I was lecturer and instructor for safety and human factors courses. I hold engineering, human factors, project management, and safety management professional qualifications and I have been member of various European and international associations.


    Cyber security is not the field of my expertise, but I think that in our modern wireless and complex systems, we need an integrated approach to safety & security.


    I look forward to hearing from you.


    Greetings

    Nektarios



  • Thanks Nektarios for introducing yourself, I hope your post will encourage other members of the Aerospace Community to contribute to this forum.
  • Former Community Member
    0 Former Community Member
    Hi there,
    I'm Janice Man. I obtained my BEng at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology and MSc(Eng) at the University of Luverpool. I worked on embedded software of aircrafts since 2006 and have moved to the space industry recently. Currenly I design a communication software for the ground segment of Ariane 6 rocket.

    I enjoy working on embedded software of the Aerospace industry. As safety is always a main concern of our vehicles, the thought process of designing safety-critical embedded software is a challenge. Besides, customers always push functionalities and timing requirements as far as possible, which make software design more challenging. Also, when going through the verification&validation phase, the robustness of testing is required to ensure the aircrafts are fit-for-purpose. This is not easy to fully achieved as well.

    Other interest... well I enjoy volunteering with the IET. I've been a volunteer for more than 14 years and am still going forward. It's great to feel I'm contributing to the institution as I'm a member of the IET family. Also personally, I like travelling around the world with my backpack. Apart from Antarctic, I've been to all the continent of the world!

    Janice
  • Thanks Janice for your introduction below to the community and for sharing how volunteering for the IET has been particularly beneficial for you.

    Antarctica is one of the places I'd like to visit as well, along with South Georgia and the Falklands.
  • Thank you to everyone who has introduced themselves on the platform so far.  I hope that new members to the community find the Aerospace area informative and of professional interest.  Please don't forget to keep you profiles up to date as this will help with the networking/engagement aspects of the platform.


    Please let me know if there is any content that you would like to see included on the platform and if you have any thoughts on the types of activities you'd like the TPN to organise, please contact me.
  • Hello there! I'm Temoc Rodriguez and just rediscovered the features in the IET website despite being a member for approx. 17 years. My background is in electronics design and i have a B.Sc (Monterrey Tech), M.Eng (McGill). and PhD (Cambridge). My early career life focused on power conversion and instrumentation design for industrial applications. And for the last 5 years I've been working in the design of electronic control units for aeroplanes. I am hoping to get more involved with IET and other aerospace institutions to start to influence decision making and regulations that heavily influence how we go about designing aeroplanes. 

    Outside work I love spending time outdoors with the family. We are keen campers, trekkers, and sailors!
  • Hi Temoc

    Thank you for posting in this area and introducing yourself.  I hope you find our Aerospace Community informative and helpful in contributing to your professional development.  

    It sounds like you've had an interesting academic study path to your career and good to hear that you are now working in the Aerospace sector.

    If there's an event in your area I hope you will be able to join in.


    Kind regards

    Deborah
  • Hi


    My name is David Lacey.  I am London-born but have lived near Glasgow for the last 36 years.  To trade I was an engineer in NATS.  Joining in 1977, my initial training was at Bletchley Park, followed by 3 years working on avionics systems at the Civil Aviation Authority Flying Unit at Stansted Airport - nothing like the busy airport that it has become in more recent years!  In 1982 I moved to Scotland and worked for 5 years in field service of aeronautical navigational-aids.  I subsequently moved to the Scottish and Oceanic Area Control Centre at Prestwick and remained there until I left NATS in 2009, by which time I had NATS Design Authority accountability for Oceanic and Datalink systems.  I have been associated with the IEE/IET since 1987, although I have never been an active member.  I am interested in all aspects of aerospace.  I am a PPL with over 800 hours and have my own Piper Super Cub.  I joined 2175 (Rolls-Royce) Squadron of the Air Training Corps in 2009 as a Civilian Instructor and continue in this role.


    Now a confession - whilst I have not been particularly active with the IET, I have been very active in the Prestwick Branch of the Royal Aeronautical Society.  I have been a committee member for more than 16 years, and have served as Treasurer, Secretary and Chairman. I am currently a member of the Royal Aeronautical Society HQ's Branches Committee.  The Prestwick Branch is quite active in the West of Scotland, hosting many events and activities.  The Branch has a loose affiliation with the South-West Scotland Area Committee of the IMechE, but we have never sought a similar relationship with the IET.  As a member of both organisations I find this a little sad.


    I wonder if it would be possible to use this network to get something moving along these lines in the West of Scotland?  Any advice or thoughts would be greatly appreciated.


    Best regards


    David Lacey BEng CEng MIET MRAeS
  • Hi I am currently the Head of Flight Safety, Quality and Safety Assurance at Hybrid Air Vehicles the world leaders in hybrid aircraft.
    A Mechanical Engineer who’s aerospace career started as an apprentice in the Fleet Air Arm (Royal Navy) reaching the level of Chief Technician before joining BAE SYSTEMS as a Senior Airworthiness Engineer on Fixed Wing Combat Aircraft.

    Whilst at BAE SYSTEMS David undertook postgraduate Masters in Systems Safety Engineering (Aerospace) at Lancaster University.


    I have specialised in
    Aviation Safety whose work has taken me all over the world as the Flight Safety Lead in the USA for the F35 program up to First Flight and the aircrafts integration into the new Queen Elizabeth class Aircraft Carrier.

    I have also been a Senior Engineering Manager for BAE SYSTEMS in Australia, Senior Engineering manager for multiple contracts in the UK and the Middle East before joining the consultancy arm of Thales as Chief Engineer on Unmanned Combat Air Vehicles.


    I was instrumental in the development of Safety Cases in support of the development and integration of Precision Guided Low Collateral Tactical Systems and the implementation of an Independent Safety Assurance capability within the MoDs Defence Procurement & Support Agency.


    My latest role at Hybrid Air Vehicles sees me heading up the Safety & Quality Assurance team supporting the development of a new aircraft type that combines lighter-than-air technology with the best of aeroplanes and helicopters to bring brand new capabilities to aircraft to the market for both commercial and military use.
     The Airlander aircraft has capabilities that no other aircraft has coupled with less noise, less pollution, a lower carbon footprint, longer endurance and better cargo-carrying capacity, credentials that will make hybrid aircraft a mainstay of aviation in the future. The Airlander exists to change the way things fly.


    Moreover, David is a member of the Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET) and is the current Chairman of the Aerospace Technical Professional Network Executive and a standing member of the IETs Transport Policy Committee.


    Mr David M. Lindley MSc MIET MRAeS
  • Hello,


    I'm Ray Smith and I enjoyed a career spanning 32 years in the Royal Air Force. In that time I managed teams of up to 200+, supporting fast-jet, large ISTAR and heritage aircraft.   I served in Germany and the United States and led engineering detachments to Europe, North and South America and to Saudi Arabia in the late 1990s. 


    With the MoD Procurement Executive, Defence Logistics Organisation and Defence Equipment & Support organisations, I managed acquisition projects worth up to £300M and running cost budgets of up to £60M per year.  Over 20 years, in various MoD jobs, I gained experience in change, risk and safety management as well as holding senior engineering posts.  I am a Graduate of the Joint Service Defence College, Greenwich.  A Chartered Engineer and a Fellow of the IET and the RAeS, I have held both UK and US Private Pilot's Licences.


    After retiring from the RAF, I spent 6 years as an aviation safety and logistic support consultant with MoD aircraft project teams, rising to the position of Operations Director in a small consulting company.  For the last 8 years. I have been  volunteering for the IET as a Professional Registration Adviser, Professional Review Interviewer and Fellow Assessor and I am currently Deputy Chairman of the Aerospace Technical and Professional Network. 


    My interests include military history and modelling and I am passionate about raising the profile of the IET as an institution that represents the interests of professional aerospace engineers.