Dr. James (Jim) Heidmann currently serves as Manager of NASA’s Advanced Air Transport Technology Project. In this capacity, he leads NASA’s technology development for subsonic transport aircraft. Prior to this role, he served as Acting Deputy Director of NASA’s Advanced Air Vehicles Program, managed NASA’s Advanced Air Transport Technology and Transformational Tools & Technologies Projects, and also served as Chief of the Turbomachinery and Heat Transfer Branch. In addition to these management roles, Dr. Heidmann spent 20 years as an Aerospace Research Engineer, publishing over 20 papers and journal articles in the area of turbomachinery aerodynamics and heat transfer. He was elected Fellow of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) in 2007, Associate Fellow of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) in 2015, and received the Outstanding Mechanical Engineer (OME) Award from Purdue University School of Mechanical Engineering in 2017. Dr. Heidmann received a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Toledo in 1986, Master of Science in Mechanical Engineering from Purdue University in 1988, and Doctorate in Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering from Case Western Reserve University in 1997.
People Category: AIAA Propulsion and Energy Forum 2020
Kathryn "Kathy" Lueders
NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine selected Commercial Crew Program Manager Kathy Lueders to be the agency’s next associate administrator of the Human Exploration and Operations (HEO) Mission Directorate on June 12, 2020. Since 2014, Lueders has directed NASA’s efforts to send astronauts to space on private spacecraft, which culminated in the successful launch of Demo-2 from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida on May 30.
Lueders began her NASA career in 1992 at the White Sands Test Facility in New Mexico, where she was the Shuttle Orbital Maneuvering System and Reaction Control Systems Depot manager. She later moved to the International Space Station Program and served as transportation integration manager, where she led commercial cargo resupply services to the space station.
She also was responsible for NASA oversight of international partner spacecraft visiting the space station, including the European Space Agency’s Automated Transfer Vehicle, the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency’s H-II Transfer Vehicle, and the Russian space agency Roscosmos’ Soyuz and Progress spacecraft. She went to Kennedy as acting Commercial Crew Program Manager in 2013 and was selected as the head of the office in 2014.
Lueders has a Bachelor of Business Administration in Finance from the University of New Mexico and a Bachelor of Science and Master of Science in Industrial Engineering from New Mexico State University.
Bobby Sethi
Dr. Bobby Sethi (FHEA, PhD) is the Deputy Director of Research for the Cranfield University, School of Aerospace, Transport and Manufacturing. He is a Senior Lecturer in Gas Turbine Combustion and Environmental Impact as well as the Leader of the Cranfield University Technoeconomic Environmental Risk Assessment (TERA) for civil aviation in the Propulsion Engineering Centre. He is also a Fellow of the UK Higher Education Academy.
His research is focused on investigating the technical, environmental and economic benefits, and risks associated with novel, disruptive technologies for civil aviation. His specific area of expertise is in numerical and experimental research of hydrogen and other low emissions combustion systems. He is the coordinator of the ongoing EU H2020 ENABLEH2 project. He has made significant contributions to a number of past EU H2020 and Framework Program projects including ULTIMATE, LEMCOTEC, CLEAN SKY 1 (SGO-ITD and TE), CLEAN SKY 2 (DEMOS), DREAM, NEWAC, VITAL and VIVACE. He has co-authored 32 journal and 75+ conference papers, and has supervised 23 PhD and 130+ MSc students.
Thomas Rötger
Dr. Thomas Rötger joined IATA in 2008 as Assistant Director Environment Technology. His main activities are monitoring and evaluating environmentally friendly technology solutions, climate change risks and adaptation means, and developing environmental standards in aviation. He is a member of several working groups of ICAO’s Committee for Aviation Environmental Protection (CAEP), including the Long-Term Aspirational Climate Goal Task Group, as well as the working groups on noise, operations, impact science and formerly emissions and alternative fuels. He also led the first phase of IATA’s sustainable fuels initiative. He is rapporteur of the Environment and Energy working group in the Advisory Council for Aviation Research and Innovation in Europe (ACARE). From 1988 to 2008 he worked at Airbus in Toulouse and Hamburg, with a focus on noise and emissions reduction, cabin technology and airport compatibility. He studied physics and chemistry in Heidelberg (Germany), Hamburg (Germany) and Grenoble (France) and holds a doctoral degree in physics.
Simon Taylor
Simon has over 24 years of broad experience in Aerospace. He is the Chief Engineer of Hybrid & Electric Aircraft within GKN Aerospace and is technically responsible for the Hybrid, Hydrogen & Electric strategy within the CTO & Strategy Team where he is leading a number of hydrogen power, propulsion and storage projects. Simon was formerly a chief engineer for Fokker in the Netherlands from 2008 to 2018 where he has worked on many aircraft projects responsible for electrical and electronic systems, and has also established the electrical systems R&T team and portfolio. Formerly Simon worked at Airbus and was originally an Aircraft Concept Designer at BAE SYSTEMS. He is a chartered engineer and fellow of the Royal Aeronautical Society.