Professor Martin Berens

Martin Berens has been the BMIMI Endowed Professor of Innovative Aviation Technologies at TU Wien since 2021. His work focuses on innovative aircraft propulsion systems, efficient thermal management, aircraft integration, and the development of reduced-order models and software tools for aircraft design and system simulation. He also works on low-noise propellers for Advanced Air Mobility and the development of the Master’s program in Aeronautical Engineering. Previously, he worked at AIRBUS from 2009 to 2021, including as Technical Skill Leader for Propulsion Simulation. There, he led international projects on engine-aircraft integration and developed technical innovations such as a passive de-icing concept. His academic career includes a degree in aerospace engineering from TU Berlin, an MSc in Aerodynamics from Cranfield University, and a PhD on multiple winglet systems for improving aircraft performance.

Professor Sergio Lavagnoli

Sergio Lavagnoli is Professor in the Turbomachinery and Propulsion Department at the von Karman Institute for Fluid Dynamics and lecturer in turbomachinery at UCLouvain. He received his PhD in Applied Sciences in 2012 from the Universitat Politècnica de València, with an experimental study of the aerodynamics and heat transfer of multi-airfoil turbine vane frames for aircraft engines. His research focuses on high-speed turbine aerodynamics and heat transfer, purge and leakage flows, unsteady transonic turbomachinery, advanced optical diagnostics, CFD and scale-resolved simulations, turbomachinery optimization, and AI-assisted design workflows. He has authored about 60 journal papers and leads industry- and EU-funded research with major propulsion and energy partners. His work combines engine-representative experiments, numerical modelling, and the analysis and optimization of turbine and turbomachinery flows to address complex scientific and industrial challenges in propulsion and power systems.

Professor Lorenz Tichy

Lorenz Tichy is Director of the DLR Institute of Aeroelasticity in Göttingen and Professor of Aeroelasticity at Technische Universität Braunschweig. With extensive experience in aeroelasticity, structural dynamics, and aircraft development, he previously worked at Airbus, where he contributed to advanced methods for transonic flutter analysis and certification of major long-range aircraft programs. His research focuses on the interaction of aerodynamic and structural forces in aerospace systems, combining experimental and numerical approaches to improve aircraft performance, safety, and efficiency.

Dr Marcello Amato

Marcello Amato is an aerospace engineer and currently serves as Director of the Aeronautics Directorate and the Cross-Sector Research Directorate at the Italian Aerospace Research Centre (CIRA) in Capua, Italy. Since joining CIRA in 1987, he has held several leadership positions, including Head of the CFD Laboratory, Head of the Fluid Physics Unit, Head of Strategic Programming and Business Development, Director of Research, and Acting General Director (2020–2022). With extensive expertise in Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) and aeronautics research, Dr Amato has played a key role in numerous European research programmes, including FP5, FP6, FP7, Horizon 2020, Horizon Europe, Clean Sky, and Clean Aviation. He actively represents CIRA in major European organisations and initiatives, contributing to the advancement of aerospace research, innovation, and sustainable aviation across Europe.