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Mr. Van Der Westhuizen heads GBA’s technology development efforts as Vice President Engineering & Chief Technical Officer (CTO). He has leadership responsibility for GBA’s engineering teams with oversight for the company’s aircraft development programs including the US Department of Defense DARPA (Defense Advanced Research Project Agency) Heliplane contract and the SparrowHawk and the Hawk series design efforts. He also has responsibility for the Company’s research and development programs for the use of autorotative flight for manned and unmanned flight. His superior engineering management skills has brought disciplined out-of-the-box thinking to the Company enhancing significantly its understanding of autorotative flight.
His considerable experience in management covers functions such as manufacturing program and project management manufacturing engineering marketing sales logistics SAP and MIS. His career covers a long period in the aviation manufacturing industry where he held several important leadership positions at Denel Aviation of Johannesburg South Africa. At both Denel then called Simera and at Atlas Aircraft Corporation he was involved in organizational re-engineering that resulted in such significant improvements leading to the awarding of important contracts to those organizations.
Mr. Van Der Westhuizen was also a part time lecturer in general management at the University of South Africa School for Business Leadership for the Management Development Program. | 