Having spent three years as the IET Aerospace Technical Professional Network (TPN) Vice-Chairman I am delighted to finally step into the shoes so ably filled by David Lindley since 2016. I should, at this point, take the opportunity to thank him for all his efforts and the support he has provided to the IET Aerospace Community over the last 3 years and also to welcome his continued involvement as Deputy Chairman, pending the identification of my own eventual successor.Having harboured a life-long passion for all aspects of aerospace, it was a great honour to be given the opportunity to become Chairman of the IET Aerospace TPN and to represent the Aerospace Technical Advisory Panel (TAP) and the IET’s wider aerospace community. Strategically, I will be aiming to:


•    Reach out to more IET members (particularly younger professionals) in the aerospace field and encourage them both to get involved with the Network’s events and to take advantage of the IET and the facilities it offers as a ‘Professional Home for Life’ for aerospace engineers. 

•    Grow the influence of the Institution in Aerospace, both nationally and globally, focusing on realistic target areas for wider international involvement, particularly the fast-growing aerospace centres in India and China.

•    Improve the IET’s ability to respond to requests for information and advice from Government and the media about key aerospace issues such as, inter alia, aircraft losses due to technical failure, the future position of UK aerospace industries, both in Europe and globally, aerospace-related green issues such as electrification and climate change and the growing security issues associated with the proliferation of unmanned air vehicles and emerging cyber threats 


Over the next 3 years, the future of aerospace in this country is likely to be dominated by the changes that will come with our exit from Europe, whatever shape they take. Having been one of the world’s leading forces in aerospace for more than 100 years, it is likely that, whenever BREXIT might materialise and whatever it may mean for technology, trade and industry, the UK will continue to be influential in most aspects of aerospace at the international level.  


For more than 150 years, the Royal Aeronautical Society (RAeS) has been the UK’s leading organisation for aerospace professionals, not only registering engineers but also representing pilots and other flight crew.  To some extent the influence and reputation of the RAeS has dominated and the role of the IET as a professional voice in Aerospace has been the lesser, along with that of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers.  With its growing membership and broadening professional scope, the IET has moved energetically away from its former narrow electrical engineering background. As a result, our Institution is well placed to forge a stronger and more influential position in aerospace.  This is not only appropriate but, indeed, almost inevitable, given the very substantial reliance of modern aircraft and spacecraft on the electrical and electronic-based technologies that are now embraced more strongly by the IET than by any of the other professional engineering institutions.  Current aerospace areas of focus such as autonomous and remotely piloted systems, cyber security and the development of all electric/more electric aircraft are all dependent on the core areas of IET professional specialism, namely electronics, digital computing and RF communications.    


For more than 6 years, I have been a keen exponent of the establishment of the Aerospace Partnership (AP), a still developing association of the IET, IMechE and RAeS, which aims to encourage and enable co-operation, joint events and a more balanced collaboration for the betterment of aerospace and the Aerospace Community, encompassing members of the RAeS, IMechE and the IET.  The AP  struggled to ‘take off’ in its early stages, but, having spoken to enthusiastic supporters of the concept in all 3 organisations, and, speaking as a FRAeS myself, I remain 100% confident that its establishment would be beneficial and I remain committed to a harmonious, active and increasingly effective Partnership.  An AP event is being planned for November 2019 and it is hoped that this will pave the way for more collaborative activities in future.     

 

The need to provide dedicated support and a professional ‘home’ for our younger aerospace engineers remain key purposes for the Network. Under the dynamic chairmanship of Rob Allison, our Young Professionals group is particularly active, organising visits and events focused on younger engineers and taking forward the series of careers advice seminars for aerospace students at universities across the country which has been successful over the past 2 years. An evening seminar on the ‘Evolution of Flight Controls’ at the University of Cranfield planned for this Autumn is just one example. 


For 2019, our events programme centres around the Royal International Air Tattoo at which we stage a presence hand-in-hand with the Swindon Local Network.  Other 2019 events include a visit to  the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight and technical presentation, an going collaboration with the Amsterdam Aviation Academy and student events such as an evening ‘Evolution of Flight Controls’ seminar at the University of Cranfield and a practical aircraft design event at the Shuttleworth Trust, Old Warden.


For 2020, the IET event will be joined in the programme by the Farnborough International Air Show, at which we are kindly hosted by Aerospace, Defence, Security & Space (ADS), primarily to assist young people develop their career aspirations at Futures Day, which is traditionally staged on the Friday of the Show.  However, due to the changed format of the 2020 Show with no air show at the weekend, we will be working closely with ADS over the next year to define the IET’s role at Farnborough next year.  Following our successful collaborative Ageing Aircraft conference at Defence Equipment and Support, Abbey Wood in late 2017, we are looking into holding a similar format event in 2020, this time focusing on the collection and exploitation of airframe, system and engine health data. We are also planning a number of student related activities.   


As a very active volunteer since my retirement from consulting in 2016, not only with the TPN but also supporting Registration & Standards in a variety of roles, my activities keep me in touch with wider aerospace engineering and up to date with the latest developments, particularly in the Defence field.  Like the wider Institution, the Aerospace TPN is only as strong as its volunteers and I hope that current and future members of the Network and its Executive will be as active as possible in organising and supporting events and offering their specialist views to inform the wider membership and UK and global aerospace communities. 


I very much look forward to working with the IET Aerospace Community over the next few years. If you would like to find out more or get involved yourself then please contact me via my profile.