New Achievements in Unmanned Systems International Symposium on Unmanned Systems and the Defense Industry 2021

T. Hikmet Karakoc, Ph.D., 
is a Full Professor with the Faculty of Aeronautics and Astronautics at Eskisehir Technical University and the Information Technology Research and Application Center at Istanbul Ticaret University.

He received his undergraduate degree from the Department of Mechanical Engineering, Anadolu University, his M.Sc. in Mechanical Engineering from the Yildiz Technical University, and his Ph.D. from Anadolu University, where he started his full-time teaching. Professor Karakoc has a wide range of research interests, including sustainable aviation, aircraft propulsion systems, insulation, heating, ventilating and air conditioning, indoor air quality, gas turbines, cogeneration systems, renewable energy, energy economics, fuels, and combustion. He has participated in numerous industrial projects on these topics as a researcher, consultant, and project manager for over 30 projects and corporations. He serves as an Editor-in-Chief, guest editor, andeditorial board member for international scientific journals and has published papers in various national and international journals, conferences, and books. Professor Karakoc actively holds membership positions for the Chamber of Mechanical Engineers and many sectorial associations, international scientific organizations, and societies and is a member of the Board of Directors of the International Association for Green Energy. He is the President of the International Sustainable Aviation Research Society (SARES), which actively supports scientists and students in the area of sustainable aviation. He organizes four symposiums on aviation subject areas as a Founding Chair.

Nadir Yilmaz, Ph.D., 
is Chair and Professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering with the College of Engineering and Architecture at Howard University. Dr. Yilmaz received his B.S., M.S., and Ph.D. degrees in Mechanical Engineering from Istanbul Technical University, Bradley University, and New Mexico State University, respectively. He has been a noted author of many publications in the fields of combustion, computational fluid dynamics (CFD), rocket propellants, and internal combustion engines. He was a U.S. Department of Energy Visiting Faculty Fellow at Sandia National Laboratories in 2012 and 2013. Dr. Yilmaz is the editor-in-chief of the
SAE International Journal of Fuels and Lubricants
and an associate editor for the
ASME Journal of Engineering for Gas Turbines and Power
. He has educated and trained many underrepresented minority and female students via various STEM programs, including the NSF-funded AMP (Alliance for Minority Participation) program.

Alper Dalkiran, Ph.D.,
 received his bachelor’s degree Faculty of Aeronautics and Astronautics at Eskisehir Technical University (Formerly known as Anadolu University) from the Avionics Department. He completed his MSc degree in the School of Science from Anadolu University in 2004 in Aviation Maintenance. He earned his Ph.D. in 2017 in Environmental Sustainability on Airports from the School of Science at Anadolu University by developing a model of energy-based calculations of an aerodrome. Dr. Dalkiran has studied aircraft engines, sustainability, airports, and exergy. He has a 17-year of professional experience in airports in information technology, automation, and integration. He has managed teams on system design, projects, tests, commissioning, operational readiness, and operations. He has been working in the School of Aviation at Suleyman Demirel University since 2019 and lecturing in flight theory, airline management, and airport design subjects.

Ali Haydar Ercan, Ph.D.,
 is a lecturer in the Electronics and Automation Department at Porsuk Vocational School at Eskisehir Technical University. He received his bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from the Faculty of Engineering at the University of Cumhuriyet, Sivas, his MSc degree in mechanical engineering from the University of Gazi, Ankara, and his Ph.D. from the Department of Aerodynamics at the University of Liverpool, where he worked on boundary layer theory on flat plate surfaces and developed empiric formulas for transition development distance. He also earned a postgraduate degree in software technologies from the University of Liverpool. Dr. Ercan has a wide range of managerial experience with international commercial private companies.