Tag: awarded to

2025 AIAA Durand Lectureship for Public Service Awarded to The Boeing Company’s Kevin G. Bowcutt

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Lecture Set for 6 January During 2025 AIAA SciTech Forum

November 18, 2024 – Reston, Va. – The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) is pleased to announce the 2025 AIAA Durand Lectureship for Public Service is awarded to Kevin G. Bowcutt, Principal Senior Technical Fellow and Chief Scientist of Hypersonics for The Boeing Company, Huntington Beach, Calif.

 

Bowcutt will deliver his lecture, “The Evolution of Hypersonic Flight Over Seven Decades and the Technical Breakthroughs that Got Us Here,” on Monday, 6 January, 3:30 p.m. ET, during the 2025 AIAA SciTech Forum, Orlando, Florida. 2025 AIAA SciTech Forum registration is available now. Journalists can request a Press Pass here.

Bowcutt is a Principal Senior Technical Fellow & Chief Scientist of Hypersonics for Boeing with 42 years of experience. He is an AIAA Fellow, a Fellow of the Royal Aeronautical Society, and a member of the National Academy of Engineering. In 2021 he was selected by Texas A&M to be a Fellow of the Hagler Institute of Advanced Study. He holds B.S., M.S., and Ph.D. degrees in aerospace engineering from the University of Maryland. Bowcutt is an internationally recognized expert in hypersonic aerodynamics, propulsion integration, and vehicle design and optimization, and leads Boeing’s hypersonic vehicle advanced design and technology development efforts.

Bowcutt’s lecture will chronicle the major milestones that have enabled air-breathing hypersonic flight, bringing future promise to current capability, and leading to worldwide pursuit of hypersonic capabilities and leadership. Hypersonic flight has the potential to dramatically impact national defense, and significantly improve the speed of global travel and the frequency and cost of space access. For more than 50 years following the first hypersonic flight in 1949, expendable rocket propulsion was the only available means of accelerating vehicles to hypersonic speed, limiting applications to costly expendable spaceflight and military missiles. Although it took more than 40 years of dedicated R&D, the idea conceived in 1957 of a more efficient air-breathing engine employing supersonic combustion, the scramjet, was finally proven viable in 2004 by flying on NASA’s X-43A. Almost 10 years later, in 2013, hypersonic air-breathing propulsion was proven practical by flying a dual-mode ramjet on the USAF/DARPA X-51 Scramjet Engine Demonstrator. These achievements were enabled by continuous advancements in high-temperature materials; test facilities, test techniques, and test campaigns; scramjet technologies, such as air intakes, isolators, injectors, mixers, flame holders, combustion chemistry, and nozzles; fluid dynamic and thermostructural simulation; and multidisciplinary design analysis and optimization.

The Durand Lectureship for Public Service, named in honor of William F. Durand, Ph.D., is presented for notable achievements by a scientific or technical leader whose contributions have led directly to the understanding and application of the science and technology of aeronautics and astronautics for the betterment of humanity. Durand was a United States naval officer and a pioneer in mechanical engineering. During his remarkable 99-year life, Durand contributed significantly to the development of aircraft propellers. He was the first civilian chair of the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA), the forerunner of NASA.

The Institute’s Public Policy Committee takes pride in selecting accomplished leaders in aeronautics and astronautics for this honor who can share their knowledge through the Durand Lecture for Public Service. For more information about the AIAA Honors and Awards program, contact Patricia A. Carr at [email protected].

Media Contact: Rebecca B. Gray, APR, [email protected], 804.397.5270 (cell)

About AIAA
The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) is the world’s largest aerospace technical society. With nearly 30,000 individual members from 91 countries, and 100 corporate members, AIAA brings together industry, academia, and government to advance engineering and science in aviation, space, and defense. For more information, visit aiaa.org, and follow AIAA on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, and Instagram.

2025 Wright Brothers Lectureship in Aeronautics Awarded to Susan Ying, AMP2FLY

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

June 30, 2025 – Reston Va. – AIAA is pleased to award the 2025 AIAA Wright Brothers Lectureship in Aeronautics to Susan Ying, AMP2FLY. Ying will deliver her lecture, “Emergence of Hybrid Electric Aircraft,” Wednesday, 23 July, 11:45 a.m. PT, during the 2025 AIAA AVIATION Forum, Las Vegas.

Ying’s lecture will provide an overview of past, present, and future Ampaire efforts to commercialize hybrid-electric aircraft. Prior work includes Ampaire’s flight of the first hybrid-electric test platform in 2019 (the Electric EEL), using both electric and traditional powertrains. Current work includes the Eco Caravan, which offers fuel savings over the original aircraft of up to 70% on short-hop routes and over 50% on long-haul flights, while still carrying nine passengers or cargo. Future work includes upgraded larger aircraft and clean sheet aircraft designs. She will highlight recent flight operations lending additional credibility to Ampaire’s plan for deploying hybrid-electric commercial service in the very near future.

Ying was the senior vice president of Global Partnerships, responsible for strategy and international partnerships at Ampaire, a deep tech start-up for electric commercial aircraft. In 2017, she retired from the Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China as the chief integration officer. In 2013, she retired from The Boeing Company as director of Boeing Research and Technology. Demonstrating success both at individual and team levels, she has been the recipient of many honors, including the Chinese Government’s Friendship Award and NASA Group Achievement Award. Before joining Boeing, Ying taught at universities and directed research in the DOE Research Labs at ISU and FSU, as well as at NASA Ames Research Center.

Ying is currently a board member of ElFly, an electric amphibian aircraft start-up based in Norway, and the immediate past vice president, Aerospace, and board member of SAE International. Ying is an AIAA Fellow and Fellow of the Royal Aeronautical Society. She is the former president of the International Council of Aeronautical Sciences (ICAS). Ying holds a commercial pilot license and is an FAA-Certified Flight Instructor. She received her Ph.D. in Aeronautics and Astronautics from Stanford University and B.S. in Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering from Cornell University.

The AIAA Wright Brothers Lectureship in Aeronautics commemorates the accomplishment of the Wright Brothers in creating the first practical airplane and also recognizes the success of their approach to problem-solving – beginning with study of the literature and including innovative thinking, constructive debate, systematic testing, and teamwork. In particular, the Wright Brothers Lectureship is awarded for the recent accomplishment of a significant “First in Aeronautical Engineering.” The lecture will highlight the details of the accomplishment and the approaches to meeting both the technical and programmatic challenges involved.

Registration for the forum is open now. Journalists can request a Press Pass online. For more information about the AIAA Honors and Awards program, contact Patricia A. Carr at [email protected].

Media Contact: Rebecca Gray, [email protected], 804-397-5270 cell

About AIAA

The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) is the world’s largest aerospace technical society. With nearly 30,000 individual members from 91 countries, and 100 corporate members, AIAA brings together industry, academia, and government to advance engineering and science in aviation, space, and defense. For more information, visit www.aiaa.org, and follow AIAA on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and X/Twitter.

2026 AIAA Durand Lectureship for Public Service Awarded to University of Colorado Boulder’s Brian Argrow

Lecture Set for Monday, 12 January, During AIAA SciTech Forum 2026

November 17, 2025 – Reston, Va. – The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) is pleased to announce the 2026 AIAA Durand Lectureship for Public Service is awarded to Brian M. Argrow, Distinguished Professor and Glenn L. Murphy Endowed Chair, Ann and H.J. Smead Department of Aerospace Engineering Sciences; Director, Integrated Remote & In Situ Sensing Program (IRISS), University of Colorado Boulder.

Argrow will deliver his lecture, “Aerospace Engineering for Science and Public Safety: Aerial Robots to Explore Tornadogenesis,” on Monday, 12 January, 3:30 p.m. ET, during the SciTech Forum, Orlando, Florida. Forum registration is available now. Journalists can request press credentials to cover the forum at [email protected].

Argrow is founding Director of the Integrated Remote & In Situ Sensing Program (IRISS) and founding Director (Emeritus) of the Research and Engineering Center for Unmanned Vehicles (RECUV) at the University of Colorado Boulder. His research covers the design and field deployment of small UAS, aero-gasdynamics, and hypersonics. He is a member of the National Academy of Engineering and AIAA Fellow. He received the Department of the Air Force Exemplary Civilian Service Award for service on the Air Force Scientific Advisory Board.

In 2024, the 30-year average for tornado-related fatalities in the United States stood at 72 per year. This figure masks episodic tornado events over just the past 20 years that resulted in 126, 553, and 104 fatalities, respectively, in 2008, 2011, and 2021. Recent studies of tornado warning statistics indicate that from 1986 to 2011 the average tornado warning time in the United States was about 18.5 minutes but has been about 15 minutes since (yes, a decrease in warning time). Severe storms researchers seek to understand how storms, particularly supercell thunderstorms, create tornadoes while forecast and warning researchers seek to use that knowledge to increase tornado warning times. In 2010, aerospace engineers from the University of Colorado Boulder (CU) teamed with meteorologists from the University of Nebraska Lincoln (UNL) for the first intercepts of supercell thunderstorms using uncrewed aircraft systems (UAS) during the “Second Verification of the Origins of Rotation in Tornadoes Experiment (VORTEX-2).” Funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF) and NOAA, VORTEX-2 remains the largest study of tornadogenesis to date. The cross-disciplinary CU-UNL team has continued to advance capabilities for increasingly autonomous and collaborative small UAS deployed from highly mobile ground stations, including the 2019 Targeted Observations with Radar and UAS of Supercells (TORUS) field campaign, involving many participants from VORTEX-2. The research continues through long-term university and agency collaborations that are seeking answers to tornadogenesis—the atmospheric conditions and processes that create tornadoes.

Argrow’s lecture presents 30 years of research and development of small aerial robots that continue to be deployed to increase knowledge of tornadogenesis while contributing to public safety by supporting advances in accurate and life-saving methods for tornado prediction, detection, and warnings.

The Durand Lectureship for Public Service, named in honor of William F. Durand, Ph.D., is presented for notable achievements by a scientific or technical leader whose contributions have led directly to the understanding and application of the science and technology of aeronautics and astronautics for the betterment of humanity. Durand was a United States naval officer and a pioneer in mechanical engineering. During his remarkable 99-year life, Durand contributed significantly to the development of aircraft propellers. He was the first civilian chair of the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA), the forerunner of NASA.

The Institute’s Public Policy Committee takes pride in selecting accomplished leaders in aeronautics and astronautics for this honor who can share their knowledge through the Durand Lecture for Public Service. For more information about the AIAA Honors and Awards program, contact Patricia A. Carr at [email protected] .

Media Contact: Rebecca Gray, APR, [email protected] , 804.397.5270

About AIAA
The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) is the world’s largest aerospace technical society. With nearly 30,000 individual members from 91 countries, and 100 corporate members, AIAA brings together industry, academia, and government to advance engineering and science in aviation, space, and defense. For more information, visit aiaa.org, and follow AIAA on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, and Instagram.

2026 AIAA Dryden Lectureship in Research Awarded to Thomas C. Corke, University of Notre Dame

Lecture Set for 13 January During AIAA SciTech Forum 2026

November 17, 2025 – Reston, Va. – The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) is pleased to announce the 2026 AIAA Dryden Lectureship in Research is awarded to Thomas C. Corke, Clark Chair Professor of Engineering, University of Notre Dame.

Corke will deliver his lecture, “Active Drag Reduction with Net Power Savings in Turbulent Boundary Layers – Physics and Scaling,” Tuesday, 13 January, 3:30 p.m. ET, during the SciTech Forum, Orlando, Florida. Forum registration is available now. Journalists can request press credentials to cover the forum at [email protected].

Corke is the Founding Director of the Notre Dame Institute for Flow Physics and Control (FlowPAC), the third Director of the Notre Dame Hessert Laboratory for Aerospace Research, and currently the Director of the Hypersonic Systems Initiative. He is internationally recognized for his research in the areas of fluid instabilities and transition, plasma dynamics, and flow control covering a full range of flow fields and Mach numbers from incompressible to hypersonic. He is a Fellow of APS, ASME, and AIAA, and founding Chair of the new Fluid Instabilities and Transition TC. Among his many publications, he is the author of three textbooks.

Corke’s lecture examines the realization of a long-sought capability in aeronautics, namely significant turbulent boundary layer net skin friction drag reduction. Laminar flow control can be applied for skin friction reduction on wings, tails, and engines; however, for sizable transports and many other applications, significant turbulent boundary layer drag reduction has long been sought. The new approach, essentially an aerodynamic breakthrough, will utilize plasma aerodynamics to control the turbulence production processes in the boundary layer (sometimes termed “coherent structures”) that are linked to viscous drag. The essential control approach is the imposition of a small spanwise mean flow, in a very economically energetic fashion. Experiments thus far indicate excellent net drag reduction performance up to Mach 0.5, with indications of similar performance into supersonic regimes. This turbulence control/large net-drag reduction success has informed the understanding of boundary layer turbulence dynamics. Fuselage turbulent skin friction accounts for 25% of the drag on a conventional transport at cruise. It holds a much greater percentage for advanced designs with greater aspect ratios and laminar flow wings. This technology appears to be capable of reducing the turbulent skin friction of such aircraft by a net 50% amount. The lecture concludes by outlining a plan for an upcoming flight test.

The Dryden Lectureship in Research is one of the most prestigious lectureships bestowed by the Institute. Since the inaugural lecture in 1961, it has been a catalyst for sharing research advancements and knowledge. This premier lecture is named in honor of Dr. Hugh L. Dryden, a renowned aerospace leader and a director of the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics, or NACA, as well as the first deputy administrator of NASA when the agency was created in 1958. The award emphasizes the importance of basic research in advancing aeronautics and astronautics. For more information about the AIAA Honors and Awards program, contact Patricia A. Carr at [email protected] .

Media Contact: Rebecca Gray, [email protected] , 804-397-5270 cell

About AIAA

The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) is the world’s largest aerospace technical society. With nearly 30,000 individual members from 91 countries, and 100 corporate members, AIAA brings together industry, academia, and government to advance engineering and science in aviation, space, and defense. For more information, visit www.aiaa.org, or follow AIAA on X/Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, and Instagram.