Munich / Berlin, 25.04.2018 - Axel Flaig is new Chairman of the four-member Advisory Board of Bauhaus Luftfahrt. The Airbus manager succeeds Dr. Rainer Martens (MTU Aero Engines), who has held the position since May 2014. Martens ended his active career as Chief Operating Officer of MTU Aero Engines and consequently resigned from his position on the Supervisory Board of Bauhaus Luftfahrt. MTU Aero Engines is now represented by Lars Wagner. For Liebherr-Aerospace Lindenberg, Josef Gropper will return to the Advisory Board, who was already a member of the Board from September 2008 to November 2011. The representation of IABG Industrieanlagen-Betriebsgesellschaft by Prof. Dr. Rudolf F. Schwarz remains unchanged. During the handover at the ILA Berlin 2018, Flaig thanked the outgoing Chairman of the Advisory Board, Martens, for his commitment over the past four years and at the same time looked forward to the new, exciting task: "As a think tank, Bauhaus Luftfahrt is unique in the European aviation research landscape. The Advisory Board will continue to do its utmost to support the Executive Board of Bauhaus Luftfahrt in creating a stimulating environment for creativity and scientific excellence".
An overview of the personnel changes in the Advisory Board of Bauhaus Luftfahrt:
Axel Flaig, Airbus, Chairman of the Advisory Board
Axel Flaig is Head of Airbus R&T and Central R&T. After studying aerospace engineering at Aachen University of Applied Sciences, Flaig started his professional career in 1980 at VFW-Fokker (now Airbus) in Bremen, Germany. As a specialist for flight mechanics and later aerodynamics, Flaig was involved in Airbus A310, A320, A330, A340, and A321 developments as well as in research programmes. From 1996 Flaig progressively held different management responsibilities inside Airbus Engineering, involving him in Airbus A400M, A380, and A350 programmes. In 2009 Flaig was appointed Head of the Flight Physics Centre of Competence and in 2014 appointed Head of Airbus R&T.
Lars Wagner, MTU Aero Engines, Vice Chairman of the Advisory Board
Lars Wagner is Chief Operating Officer of MTU Aero Engines. After studying mechanical engineering and aeronautical engineering at RWTH Aachen University, Imperial College London (UK), and MIT (US), he held various management positions in development, manufacturing, strategy, and operations at Airbus in France, Germany, Spain, and the UK (2003-2015). From 2015 to 2017 Wagner was Head of OEM Operations at MTU Aero Engines; since January 2018 the graduate engineer and MBA has been the engine manufacturer's Chief Operating Officer in Munich.
Josef Gropper, Liebherr-Aerospace Lindenberg
Josef Gropper is Managing Director of Liebherr-Aerospace Lindenberg. After studying production technology at Ulm University of Applied Sciences, Gropper joined Liebherr in 1978. Gropper has more than 35 years' experience in production and is responsible for production, procurement, and asset investment at Liebherr-Aerospace & Transportation. Since 2008 Gropper has been Managing Director and Chief Operating Officer of the divisional controlling company Liebherr-Aerospace & Transportation SAS, France. Gropper is also a member of the Board of Directors of Liebherr LAMC Aviation (Changsha) Co., Ltd., China as well as a member of the Supervisory Board of Zhejiang Liebherr Zhongche Transportation Systems Co., Ltd., China.
Handover at ILA Berlin 2018: Prof. Dr. Mirko Hornung (Executive Board, Bauhaus Luftfahrt, 5th from left), Insa Ottensmann (Executive Board, Bauhaus Luftfahrt, 2nd from left), Axel Flaig (Advisory Board, Airbus, 4th from left), Prof. Dr. Rudolf F. Schwarz (Advisory Board, IABG, 3rd from left), Josef Gropper (Advisory Board, Liebherr, 7th from left), and Lars Wagner (Advisory Board, MTU Aero Engines, 1st from left) with outgoing Chairman Dr. Rainer Martens (6th from left).
About the Advisory Board of Bauhaus Luftfahrt: https://www.bauhaus-luftfahrt.net/en/about-us/organisation/advisory-board/
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