How are you paying it forward?

I am back in the skies this week. This time I am flying to my youngest grandson’s first birthday party. My older grandson will be there too! It is such a privilege that cross-country flights are so accessible. My wife and I can live on opposite sides of a continent from our family and still see them several times a year. We are the lucky few in human history that have this opportunity. We can do this because of our aviation industry.

I’m on a 737-700 as I write this. As I talk to people in the airport, the question of what I do for a living comes up. “I am an aerospace engineer. I have spent 30 years designing aircraft.” Then they will ask “Did you design this aircraft?” I say “No. The fundamental design of this 737 was done when I was as old as my grandchildren are now.” They are shocked as they look at my grey hair. More people will fly somewhere on a 737 today than any other aircraft. It’s prolific, but it was designed more than 50 years ago.

So I was thinking as I was walking up the aisle to stretch my legs, what is next for aerospace? What kind of aircraft will my grandchildren fly when they grow up, what is needed to help our industry get there, and how can I help?

I write and speak often about innovation and digital transformation in aerospace. Those things are absolutely essential, but today I am thinking about something more fundamental: people. All the digital tools in the world will not create anything or solve any problems if there are no great people to use them.

One of the reasons I left day-to-day aerospace development three years ago to lead aerospace & defense strategy at Siemens was that I wanted to make a difference. I want maturing digital transformation to be one of the legacies I leave this industry I love. I believe I am in a better position to do this at Siemens than I was at Boeing, Moog, or Raytheon. But I have another responsibility - as all of us do. We have the responsibility to prepare the next generation of engineers and aerospace innovators.

I had the chance to spend some time with one of our engineering interns this week. She is about to start her senior year at Michigan. She told me about her plans for a career at NASA. There is no better way to get excited about our industry than to talk to a motivated young engineer about to enter it. I also participated in an aerospace research project at the University of Arizona this week. I love that I work for a great company with a strategy and passion for STEM education that encourages its employees to help the next generation.

I am teaching my grandchildren about life, about Jesus, and about science, technology, engineering, and math. But there will be a day when I am no longer around to help them. Who will come after me to help them and thousands like them design the next generation of aircraft? What are each of us doing to train the next generation of engineers? None of us want to be flying the 737-1900XXLMAX+ in the year 2060.