T.I.
Chief Engineer Office Member
Holding a Electrical-Electronics Engineering PhD degree, after BSc graduation he started as a research and teaching assistant in Ankara University Faculty of Engineering, his passion for aircraft design & development was so high, he dropped academy and started working for Turkish Aerospace. He has been involved in development, integration and certification activities for both avionics and flight control systems for civil and military indigenous platforms. He has experienced all phases of aircraft development cycle from T0 to certification and customer acceptance. He also experienced, development of verification environments like HIL/SIL, Iron bird and attended quite a lot of test & verification activities during ground and flight testing of several platforms. He joined SkyDrive in October 2023 as a Chief Office Member taking responsibility on avionics, flight controls and power systems.
Updated on 11th December 2023
T.I. Interview
Introduction:
Meet T.I., a distinguished aerospace engineer hailing from Turkey with 19 years of experience in the industry, primarily with major aircraft manufacturers. His journey began as a child, building plastic models and dioramas, fueling his passion for aerospace, a passion that persevered despite his parents disposing of his first 100 models.
Background:
He graduated from Ankara University’s Physics Department and embarked on an academic path, working as a research and teaching assistant during MSc studies which was followed with a PhD in Electrical-Electronics Engineering after switching to aerospace industry. During his time in the academy, he played a crucial role in developing graduate research laboratories, handling everything from purchasing to teaching and research. Despite being immersed in international events, he sought academic progress in Belgium and other European countries. However, the allure of the thriving Turkish aerospace industry led him to transition from academics to aerospace. his aerospace career took off with a role in Turkey’s aerospace industry, leveraging his academic research background, lab management experience, and understanding of the international aerospace scene.
Career and Experience:
With 15 years of experience as an avionics and flight control systems engineer, he worked extensively on military aircraft, focusing not only off-the-shelf components but also development from scratch LRUs which are safety critical. His expertise spans human-machine interface, equipment integration, defining high level SW&HW requirements/architectures, autopilot, and fly-by-wire technology through ground and flight testing. His commitment to mastery is evident as he turned down positions to further develop his skills before moving up. He believes that staying with a position and or a department within aerospace at least five years is a must to fully develop and to add value.
Working with SkyDrive:
He welcomes his professional experience with Turkish Aerospace and appreciates the opportunity to learn from his superiors. He is eager to streamline tasks, including flight controls, avionics, power systems, and remote pilot operations at SkyDrive. He embraces the challenges of developing power for new electric aircraft like an eVTOL. He seeks realistic goals in a startup, testing himself in this agile environment, mastering new technologies and, of course, experiencing the thrill of flying the SKYDRIVE eVTOL.
Living and Working in Japan:
Japan’s unique position between East and West attracted him, and he appreciates the country’s highly developed aerospace history. Culturally, he feels at ease in Japan, which values cleanliness and personal hygiene, without encountering foreign biases.
Life in Japan:
He is also a musician and loves to explore music shops in his free time. He was in search of his dream guitar, an Ibanez fretless hollow body bass which he found successfully and a dream came through. He also indulges in his love for museums and has been captivated by Kyoto’s rich culture and art.
Message to Future SkyDrive Colleagues:
He describes the SkyDrive team as highly motivated, a blend of young and experienced aerospace and automotive engineers. He invites those seeking a flexible environment in a transitioning startup to a full-fledged aerospace company to join SkyDrive. He emphasizes the collaborative and dynamic nature of the work, with opportunities for both local and remote work, catering to diverse working styles.