When an appointment requires the approval of the Federal Ministry of Defence, it seems to be a special university. This is what happened this year with the appointment of Priv.-Doz. Dr.-Ing. habil. Michael Schultz to the position of W3 Professor of Air Traffic Concepts at the Universität der Bundeswehr München (UniBwM) - the University of the Federal Armed Forces Munich.

Prof. Schultz is a true "offspring" of the TU Dresden (TUD) and in particular of the "Friedrich List" Faculty of Transport and Traffic Sciences there. He studied Economics and Engineering until 2002. His interest in aviation was particularly awakened by the aerodynamics lectures of Prof. (em.) Roger Grundmann. This was followed in 2010 by his dissertation at the Chair of Air Transport Technology and Logistics, supervised by his doctoral supervisor and head of the chair, Prof. Dr.-Ing. Hartmut Fricke. After completing his doctorate, he moved to the DLR Institute of Flight Guidance in Braunschweig in 2014 as Head of Department for Air Traffic Systems. With his habilitation, he returned to the faculty, where he was most recently a private lecturer at TU Dresden. After the announcement, the faculty management congratulated Priv.-Doz. Dr.-Ing. habil. Michael Schultz on his appointment.

Professorship with conceptual and technical orientation and focus on operations

Michael Schultz has taught prospective traffic engineers and master's students on the aviation and logistics course at TU Dresden, including aerodynamics and flight characteristics, aerodrome operations and process planning & traffic flow control. Now he passes on his knowledge at the UniBwM. The UniBwM is a modern, civilian campus university where, for the most part, officer candidates are trained in a wide range of subjects. It is therefore a "completely normal university", according to Schultz, but where teaching takes place in trimesters.

The newly created professorship at UniBwM, based at the Department of Aerospace Engineering, has a conceptual and a technical orientation with a focus on operations. Here he can tie in very well with his previous research around the systematic analysis of the air transport system, says Schultz.

He wants to help shaping the future of mobility from an air traffic safety perspective, he says. "There is great potential here." Big data, automation, urban air mobility, drone research, but also dynamic airspace structures are the topics of the day.

Promoting young academics such as doctoral students and post-docs

During his work at TU Dresden, he says, networking with other professorships within and outside the Faculty of Transport and Traffic Sciences was important to him, for example with telematics or transport economics. "Simply to obtain more knowledge," explains Michael Schultz. "Transport research is systemic research. Nothing can be considered on its own. At the Faculty of Transport and Traffic Sciences at TU Dresden, the only one of its kind in Germany, there is a unique mixture of the most diverse research areas around the topic of transport united under one roof. From mechanical engineering to electrical engineering, communication technologies, computer science to economics and (traffic) psychology."

He continues to feel connected to his old place of work in Dresden. "I can well imagine further collaboration on research projects," he says. He also still supervises doctoral students together with Prof. Fricke at the TUD.

As a newly appointed professor, he has made it a priority to support young researchers such as doctoral students and post-docs. "Helping them network, find topics and develop their careers is something I find very important."