The Future of Aviation: A Conversation with Industry Leaders
COVID-19 has dramatically affected passenger aviation. Nevertheless, brighter skies are dawning for this sector as vaccinations grow, better treatments are developed, and the industry improves the monitoring and management of the disease.
Yet the aviation industry extends beyond passenger air travel. While COVID-19 brought economies to a halt, the air cargo sector kept cities and nations going as supply chain management was rethought. Moreover, aviation’s future will see the advent and development of many exciting technologies including biometric airport processing, drones, and autonomous flying vehicles.
At McGill University, we are looking beyond the immediate effects of the pandemic to understand what the future holds for aviation. During this panel discussion, aviation leaders from across sectors will explore the future of this complex field, sharing perspectives and insights on what we can expect to change, obstacles we need to prepare for, and exciting opportunities to come.
The agenda includes questions such as:
- How will commercial aviation recover in the short run and how will it prosper during the upcoming decade?
- How will supply chain management and cargo air transport be transformed?
- What will be the impact of new technologies, such as biometric airport processing, drones, and autonomous flying vehicles?
- What sectors of the aviation industry will do best in a post-COVID 19 world and where will the most promising opportunities for rewarding careers develop?
Our Panelists
- René Armas Maes, VP Commercial and regional partner at MIDAS Aviation
- Oltion Carkaxhija, Executive VP Transformation, Air France/KLM
- Luis Felipe de Olivera, Director-General, ACI World
- Angela Gittens, Former Director-General, ACI World
- Dr. Ruwantissa Abeyratne, Senior Associate, Aviation Law & Policy, Aviation Strategies International and Lecturer, Integrated Aviation Management, McGill University
- Duncan Bureau, Former Senior VP Sales and Distribution, Etihad Airways
- John Gradek, Former Air Canada Executive, Faculty Lecturer, Integrated Aviation Management, McGill.
Host: Dr. John Saba, Adjunct Professor, Faculty of Law, Institute of Air & Space Law, and Lecturer, Integrated Aviation Management, McGill University