Program

As the Chief of Air Pollution and Noise Control at Heathrow Airport in London, UK, Rick Norman has a unique perspective on some of the most pressing issues aviation has to deal with today. With volumes of air traffic steadily increasing, the ecological impact of aviation presents larger issue than ever.

The situation of Heathrow Airport is especially challenging as it is the 3rd largest airport in the world and additionally, it is situated fairly close to London’s center which makes it a potential factor on health of millions of people living in its vicinity.

John’s aviation career began with flying US Navy attack aircraft off of aircraft carriers during the Vietnam and Persian Gulf wars.

He is best-known for writing and thinking about high impact surprises—wild cards—and the process of surprise anticipation. In 1989, Mr. Petersen founded a non-profit, future-oriented research organisation, The Arlington Institute (TAI).

John´s government and political experience include stints, among others, at the National War College, Naval War College Secretary of Defense, and the National Security Council staff at the White House.

Currently, Mr. Petersen is a Chairman of the Lindbergh Foundation, established in 1977 by General James H. Doolittle and Astronaut Neil Armstrong to honor Charles Lindberghs’ pioneering contributions in aviation, exploration, and the humanities. The cornerstone of the Foundation is keeping a balance between the technological advancements, and the preservation of the human and natural environments.

Darren Ansell has been the Space and Aerospace Engineering Lead in the School of Computing, Engineering and Physical Sciences, University of Central Lancashire since September 2012. At UCLAN Darren is leading a number of collaborative research projects with industry partners, including the 'GAMMA' Growing Autonomous Mission Management Applications programme, developing autonomous, intelligent software for the aerospace and nuclear industries.

His research interests include autonomous and intelligent systems and he previously worked in industry at BAE Systems in research management and research and development roles, specialising in Mission Systems and Autonomy. At BAE Systems he was the Engineering lead for the ASTRAEA programme which developed UAV technology to support the integration of unmanned platforms into UK airspace, where he led the development of 'Sense and Avoid' collision avoidance technology, autonomy and decision making software and image processing research.

Leader and manager of the Breitling Jet Team, Jacques Bothelin, is one of the world’s most experienced aerobatics pilots. He has clocked up over 11,500 flight hours on 145 types of planes, and performed around 2,800 demonstrations in 25 countries.

The Breitling Jet Team is the world’s largest professional civilian flight team performing on jets. The formation consists of 7 Aero L39 Albatros and flies on airshows all around the world.

Autographing

Colonel Jaroslav Míka is one of the most significant personalities and truly a rising star of the Czech Air Force. As the commander of 211th Tactical Squadron, he led a detachment of four JAS-39C Gripen fighter aircraft in a deployment to the NATO Baltic Air Policing mission. This deployment was significant as the first foreign deployment of Czech fighter aircraft since World War 2. He is still an active fighter pilot. However, in his current staff role at the General Staff of the Army of the Czech Republic, he is primarily involved in the creation of new concepts of training and combat readiness certification of future Czech fighter pilots.

Captain Ivo Kardoš flies the JAS-39 Gripen fighter aircraft. He is one of the elite combat-ready pilots that protect the Czech skies day or night, 7 days a week. He also has experience from deployments into Baltic countries and Iceland. Captain Kardoš is the current Czech display pilot for the JAS-39 Gripen and his aerobatic skills are viewed and admired by thousands of spectators at airshows all over Europe.

Dr. Ying currently hold the position of the President of the International Council of the Aeronautical Science (ICAS). She devoted over 35 years to the aerospace industry, with the last three years as the Chief Integration Officer of the Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China (COMAC).

In 2013, she retired after two decades from the Boeing Company as the Director of Research and Technology.

Before joining Boeing, Ying taught at universities and directed research in the DOE Research Labs and NASA Ames Research Center.

Dr. Ying holds a Commercial Pilot License and is a FAA-Certified Flight Instructor. She received her PHD and MS in Aeronautics and Astronautics from Stanford University.

Justin Hughes is a former Executive Officer of the Red Arrows, performing over 250 displays worldwide. As a military fighter pilot, he was qualified to lead any scale of mission in any theatre, and now uses his learning and experience from aviation to help other types of organisations build high-performance cultures. He is a renowned speaker, presenting in Europe, the Middle and Far East, and the author of The Business of Excellence.

Jan Jurek left Czechoslovakia in 1968 and started a new life in Canada where he obtained a Commercial Pilot Licence. He went on to complete a multi-engine endorsement as well as an instrument rating.

He worked in many pilot positions, from a pilot of oil company in Calgary through a chief pilot of PEMEX Mexico, inspector of Transport Canada and ICAO, chief air traffic inspector in Bahrain to Vice President of Qatar Airways for air operations.

He has accumulated roughly 18 800 flight hours in many aircraft types (B737, B727, A320, GulfStream I/IIA, KingAir, DC-3, Cessna, Piper… and L-13 Blanik).

Roland Vermeiren is the President of the global Aerospace Medical Asociation, apart from that he has been for more than 20 years Chairman of the Eurocontrol Medical Board and for 3 times elected President of ESAM.

Roland is one of the most globally recognized expert on aviation medicine with 40 years of experience. He is regularly sharing his experience with colleagues and students on congresses all around the world.