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Alex Preston is Editor of Inflight magazine. Spanning over two decades, Alex’s B2B editorial background covers various industries including data centres, power generation and telecommunications. He can currently be found channeling his inner av-geek as an aviation editor specialising in cabin interiors, inflight entertainment and connectivity, seating, lighting and more.

Alex Macheras is an aviation analyst, broadcasting and discussing the world’s aviation news across international networks including BBC, Al Jazeera and LBC. With a focus on the commercial airline side of the industry, Alex keeps viewers and listeners up to date with the latest updates from across the airline world, the challenges facing the industry, plus exclusive sit-down discussions aviation’s most prominent executives. Alex also focuses on the delivery and entry-into-service of new jets, and recently starred as the lead in a Channel 4 special “The World’s Most Luxurious Airline” taking viewers the behind-the-scenes world of an exclusive A380 delivery for Singapore Airlines.

Alya A. Hafeedh AL Qalam AL Yafie is the Manager of Development Engineering at Oman Air with experience on Avionics/ Electrical systems, e-Enablement, IFE and connectivity across the Oman Air fleet, and is currently in charge of IFE and connectivity. She received a degree as a Master of Science in Maintenance Management from Glasgow Caledonian in the period from 2008 -2011, in addition to a high diploma from the aviation academy in Egypt. Alya is the first female Gulf National Aircraft Avionics Maintenance Engineer to successfully acquire a DGCAR Oman Aircraft Maintenance Engineer License in1998 on Aircraft Avionics and Electrical Systems. She was recently honored with a Certificate of Appreciation for her contribution and inspiration to Omani women, from the National Bank of Oman and the Whispers of Serenity Clinic in Muscat, and has also received a Certificate of Appreciation for her outstanding contribution and inspiration to Omani Women from Oman Air.
Chief Digital and Customer Experience Officer & & EVP (Executive Vice President) since 2014. Before joining Aeromexico he worked at COO at Clarus Digital and as Communications Manager for Unilever Mexico.

Dan Freeman is director of Payloads and Customer Engineering for Boeing Commercial Airplanes. He also serves as engineering director for Boeing's Confident Travel Initative to help the aviation industry safely resume global air travel amid the Covid-19 pandemic. In Dan's role he is responsible for integrating the functional requirements and aesthetics within the cabin and cargo compartments, ensuring functional excellence, and leading the Flmmability Compliance System.

David Fox is Deutsche Telekom’s Programme Lead for the European Aviation Network (EAN) initiative. Prior to playing a major role in forging the EAN partnership with Inmarsat, David joined DT in 2009, leading several international rollout programmes, helping drive innovation across DT's European footprint. His pre-DT career involves management roles in several wired and wireless ISPs across Europe. David holds an MSc in Applied Computing. DT’s Inflight unit provides ISP services for various airline customers around the world, enabling their passengers with seamless broadband connectivity.

Dr. Joe Leader serves as the CEO of APEX, one of the largest international airline associations in the world backed by the expertise of two Board of Directors and a Board of Governors consisting solely of global airline CEOs and Presidents. As a global keynote speaker and industry expert, Dr. Leader testified before the US Congress in March on airline passenger experience advances and COVID-19 preparedness. Leader holds both undergraduate and graduate degrees from Emory University, an MBA in Technology Management (MBA/TM) and obtained his business Ph.D. with his dissertation research on accelerating technology adoption in aviation.

Gustavo Nader is the head of Strategy at Thales InFlyt Experience. With over 25 years of broad international experience in the wireless and satellite connectivity industries, Gustavo offers a blend of unique in-depth technology expertise, business development and strategy knowledge. He is widely recognized for his ability to communicate complex technology concepts and translate them into business opportunities. Over the course of his career, Gustavo has held key positions in business development and strategy, playing an instrumental role in growth and value creation in major companies such as Inmarsat and EchoStar.

Ingo Wuggetzer is responsible for the complete coverage of all Cabin Marketing activities – from Customer Needs, product promotion, Airspace brand management - up-to Customer campaign activities to create value added solutions by “consumer-centric” approach. Prior to this role, Ingo was Vice President Strategy, Innovation and Design at Airbus and was also with Lufthansa for 10 years, holding several roles like General Manager Inflight Experience. In addition to his role at Airbus, Ingo is on the judging panel for the Crystal Cabin Award and was a board member of the APEX Board for seven years, chairing the Marketing and Communication Committee.
Jenny Southan is editor and founder of Globetrender, a travel trend forecasting agency and online magazine dedicated to the future of travel. Globetrender not only offers bespoke consulting services but weekly trend briefings and deep dive trend reports. Jenny is also a public speaker and freelance journalist who writes for publications including Conde Nast Traveller, The Telegraph and Mr Porter. Previously she was features editor of Business Traveller magazine for ten years.

Joanna Bailey is Editor of Simple Flying. Freshly repatriated after four years of travel across four continents with two kids in tow. Now at the helm of all content published across Simple Flying.

Michael Gill has been the Executive Director of the Air Transport Action Group (ATAG) since 2014. ATAG is the only global association that represents all sectors of the air transport industry with a mission to promote aviation’s sustainable growth for the benefit of society.He is also Director, Aviation Environment of the International Air Transport Association (IATA), with responsibility for developing and implementing IATA’s work in the environment field. Michael is an aviation lawyer with experience in private practice as well as with IATA. He is a Fellow of the Royal Aeronautical Society and Chairman of its Air Law Group.
John Walton is an expert aviation journalist in the commercial aviation, passenger experience and aircraft manufacturing arenas. With a strong background in digital and longform journalism, he provides a unique perspective on the drivers behind aviation decision-making with an engaging, thought-provoking style. John also draws on insights from a government and academic background at HM Treasury in London, the China Foreign Affairs University in Beijing, and as Director of Data at Routehappy. He holds a Master of Arts degree in International Relations, is bilingual in French, is currently based in central France.

Josh Melin is currently Product Line Director for Honeywell Forge for Airlines with Honeywell Connected Enterprise Aerospace. In this role, Josh is responsible for managing the strategy, business plan, roadmaps, and P&L for Connected Maintenance, Flight Efficiency, and software offerings in the Airline market. Josh has been with Honeywell over 12 years in positions of increasing responsibility in Engineering, Project Management, Lean, Site Operations Leadership, and Product Line Leadership. Josh holds a Bachelor’s of Science Degree in Mechanical Engineering from the Pennsylvania State University and a Master’s of Business Administration from Arizona State University.

APEX Media Director Maryann Simson has been active as a journalist and consultant in aviation media since 2008. In 2012 Maryann moved to Europe, where she launched a public relations consulting service to SMOs in passenger experience and airline supply. During this time, she contributed to publications including Aircraft Interiors International, APEX and Runway Girl Network, where she later acted as Commercial Director. As APEX Media Director, she oversees the production of the Association’s e-newsletter, magazine and social media outputs. She is a popular conference moderator and presenter, having hosted the Crystal Cabin Awards Gala and over 100 online videos.

Nathan Clapton is VP, Inflight Media at Inmarsat. This global role sees him developing a portfolio of connected services aimed at helping airlines monetise the passenger journey. So far, this covers a range of streaming, travel commerce, retail and advertising products. Nathan previously headed up UK&I Sales for Inmarsat Aviation’s mobile communications networks. Prior to joining Inmarsat, Nathan enjoyed a long career in digital media business development with roles at TripAdvisor, Lonely Planet, BBC, The Guardian & The Telegraph.
As the head of the Inflight Connectivity Business for Inmarsat Aviation, I help airlines achieve the untapped commercial opportunities of inflight Wi-Fi – from building passenger loyalty to driving ancillary revenues through digital transformation in the cabin.
Beyond my current role, I have a track record of building, launching, and marketing online services and technology products and driving their adoption at leading companies including Reuters, Boeing, Fidelity Investments, Bank of America, McKinsey & Company and Goldman Sachs.
Having spent more than two decades implementing disruptive technology solutions for some of the world’s largest businesses, I am a firm believer in the value of technology as a driver of customer satisfaction and growth.

As President of Inmarsat Aviation, Philip Balaam is spearheading the company’s efforts to transform the global aviation industry by bringing complete connectivity to every aircraft and flight path in the world. He was appointed as Inmarsat Aviation’s President in September 2017, having previously served as Inmarsat’s Chief Strategy Officer. Before joining Inmarsat, Phil was responsible for international sales, strategy and business development at AsiaSat in Hong Kong. Prior to this, he was with Arianespace for 13 years, including the role of sales director based in Paris, and subsequently as sales and marketing director for Asia Pacific based in Singapore.

Originally Agronomist specialized in genetics and molecular biology with strong expertise in Computer Science (Object Oriented technologies and Information Management modelling), Philippe worked for the most important accounts in France as an object modeling expert (French National Space Center, Alcatel Space...), but left his space and software activities to focus on the Air Transport Industry.
Working for the former Rockwell Collins (now Collins Aerospace part of Raytheon Technologies) for more than 20 years in different domains (Information Management integration challenges in Air Transport, Airlines and Aircraft Manufacturers Marketing…), Philippe is now in charge of defining and positioning an innovative portfolio of applications and data services leveraging the Connected Aircraft ecosystem developed by Collins Aerospace.

Philippe Combe is SITA FOR AIRCRAFT’s expert of inflight passenger connectivity, heading the Mobile ONAIR product portfolio. As such, he plays a important in defining the future inflight cellular connectivity product and establishing partnership with mobile operators.
With over 15 years of international experience in Telecoms and IT, specializing in roaming, M2M and Internet of Thing service, he has held a variety of posts spanning wholesale business management, partnership management, to product portfolio strategy and product development.

Rebecca Sidelinger is a member of the Honeywell Aerospace leadership team and President of the Mechanical Systems & Components Strategic Business Unit. In this role, she is responsible for running a $3.5B business unit consisting of four business enterprises: Air & Thermal Systems, Mechanical Components, Wheels & Braking Systems and Honeywell Federal Solutions.
Since joining Honeywell in 2011, Sidelinger has held a range of leadership positions, including Vice President and General Manager of Electric Power & Lighting. She also led the Satellite Communications and Propulsion Engine product lines for Honeywell Aerospace.

Rob Ranieri is a Vice President in IBM’s Global Travel and Transportation Industry practice responsible for IBM’s travel industry offering. Rob and his offering team focus on developing the IBM Travel Platform that allows IBM clients to transform their businesses for today’s digital world. Prior to his role in Travel and Transportation, Rob led the Global Apple iOS Development Centers focused on building enterprise apps across 14 industries. Prior to that, Rob held several executive roles in the IBM Services business.

Robert is Director, Marketing and Business Development Collins Aerospace, a Raytheon Technologies subsidiary. Based in Annapolis, Maryland in the Information Management Services business, responsibilities include supporting strategic planning, acquisitions, technology evaluation, marketing programs and new business case development for the Airports, Surface Transportation and Critical Infrastructure businesses.
Robert joined the Company in 2001 as Director, Corporate Business Development, where he was active in numerous new business evaluations and new product launches throughout the Company. He also managed the Company’s initial equity sales process that resulted in the Company’s sale to The Carlyle Group in 2007 and then to Rockwell Collins in 2013.

Sally Gethin is a leading expert across all national & global broadcasters: BBC News UK /World, BBC Breakfast, ITV News, Good Morning Britain, Sky News and Al Jazeera. Radio: BBC World Service, BBC5live, Radio 4, PRI's the World, all regional BBC radio stations and LBC. Her remit includes: commercial air transport, aircraft, airlines, airports, the passenger experience, supersonic flight, Boeing 737MAX, pilot and cabin crew issues, aviation sustainability, regulatory issues and more.

Petry’s background spans over two decades of working with leading global design consultancies and creating business value for various industries and Fortune 500 companies. He joined Panasonic Avionics in 2019 as Director of Innovation, driving innovations and experiences that complement the “personalized” needs of passengers. He also oversees hardware design, leads customer innovation workshops, and heads Panasonic Innovation Studio. Prior to this, his focus has been working with the industry’s top aircraft interior companies, OEMs, and airlines to enhance the physical journey and digital travel experience. Petry holds several International design awards and three co-inventor patents.

Seth Miller has over a decade of experience covering the airline industry. With a strong focus on passenger experience, Seth also has deep knowledge of inflight connectivity and loyalty programs. He is widely respected as an unbiased commentator on the aviation industry.He is frequently consulted on innovations in passenger experience by airlines and technology providers.
Shashank Nigam is a globally sought-after consultant, speaker and thought leader on airline branding and customer engagement strategy. He is the Founder and CEO of SimpliFlying, one of the world’s largest aviation marketing firms working with over 85 aviation clients in the last ten years. Nigam is also the youngest winner of the Global Brand Leadership Award and has addressed senior executives globally, from Chile to China.
Nigam’s impassioned and honest perspectives on airline marketing have found their way to over 100 leading media outlets, including the BBC, CNBC, Reuters and Bloomberg, and into leading publications such as the Wall Street Journal and the New York Times. He writes a dedicated monthly column in Flight’s Airline Business, challenging the typical assumptions about airline marketing.

Having enjoyed 15 years within the Microsoft eco-system, Suzy has an unrivalled and unequivocal understanding of what solutions organisations need to perform at their best and how to meet those requirements on time and in budget. One of the three Microsoft MVP’s within AddIn365, Suzy applies her acute understanding of digital possibilities when leading the leadership team and their clients.
Suzy won Computing Magazine’s ‘Entrepreneur of the Year’ award and has been recognised as one of the UK’s top businesswomen by Management Today. Suzy has recently been awarded the prestigious Microsoft MVP award in both 2019 and 2020.

Sylvie Sureda-Perez is Senior Director, Datalink Solutions, at Inmarsat. In this role, she leads all Iris programme activities for Inmarsat’s aviation business. Sylvie is responsible for ensuring overall alignment to strategy and business objectives, and is responsible for relationships with key Iris programme stakeholders, including SESAR, the European Commission and technology partners such as aircraft and terminal manufacturers. Sylvie has worked in the air traffic management field for more than 20 years, including engineering and business development positions at Thales and Airbus.