Plane wing with countryside in background

Centre for Sustainable Aviation

The centre is based at the School of Aviation and is focused on advancing the knowledge of aviation development, operations, and policies.

Vision

We are a research-led aviation centre in New Zealand focused on advancing the knowledge of aviation development, operations, and policies in New Zealand and internationally. Our vision is to work towards sustainable aviation through industry engagement and impactful research.

Goals

The goals of our centre are to:

  • increase high impact research publications in aviation-related subjects that contribute to the growth of sustainable aviation operations
  • acquire external research grants in New Zealand and internationally through research in aviation and related sectors
  • procure competitive research funding to initiate and support impactful aviation research through engagement with global agencies
  • offer external consultancy to domestic and international organisations, aviation stakeholders, policymakers, and governments to enhance operations, decision-making and sustainability in aviation and related sectors
  • support and develop the next generation of research students and postdoctoral scholars as independent and critical thinkers so they can be active members of research teams.

Methods

Though our research and networks, we promote, connect, and help realise the university’s strategic priorities around the themes of:

  • sustainability
  • technology and digital transformation
  • wellbeing
  • performance and governance
  • markets and prosperity.

Partners and collaborators

Our centre intends to establish partnerships with other aviation research centres and industry-level organisations to achieve our strategic goals. We collaborate internationally with other universities and organisations on research projects and exchange programmes.

Our people

Meet the people in the Centre for Sustainable Aviation.

Dr Thanh Ngo

Dr Thanh Ngo

Director, Centre for Sustainable Aviation

Thanh is an expert in efficiency and productivity analysis with over 70 publications. His recent research focuses on sustainability in aviation and transportation, as well as in other sectors (eg agriculture, manufacturing, banking and finance), regarding the environmental, social, and governance (ESG), sustainable development goals (SDGs), emissions, and green growth.

Dr Rose Davies

Dr Rose Davies

Senior Lecture, School of Aviation

Rose is engaged in research on sustainable fuel for general aviation engines; application of biodiesel in aviation diesel engines and study of engine performance, fuel specifications comparison, combustion process analysis by using knock sensors with different blends of biodiesel and jet fuel.

Dr Louis Wu

Dr Louis Wu

Lecturer, School of Aviation

An expert in air transport and tourism economics with over 10 publications. His research explores interconnections between air transport and regional prosperity and resilience, emphasising economic and social sustainability of airlines, airports, and aviation-related tourism activities on local and global scales. This includes green operations, efficiency, productivity, & sustainability reporting.

Professor Andrew Gilbey

Professor Andrew Gilbey

Doctoral Mentor Supervisor, School of Aviation

Andrew is currently supervising one of the school’s doctoral students in the investigation of the use of Virtual Reality flight simulators in the training of ab-initio pilots. It is hypothesised that the use of simulators, rather than real aircraft, has the potential to help meeting the university and the wider industry’s sustainability aspirations.

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