Our History

Foundation of IASA

Alexandra Slabutu was the first elected Chairperson alongside Carl Lynam and Andrei Jatariu and Greeshma Gopi elected as Treasurer, Head of Marketing and Secretary. During this period, the elected members recruited Cameron Fahy, Ciaran Tourish, Andreea Slabutu, Bridget Corry from various colleges around Ireland.

One of the main ideas considered by the founders of IASA was to bridge the gap between students and the aviation industry. The Co-Founders decided to host the 1st Annual Symposium in Dublin in October 2015.

1st IASA Symposium

The 1st Annual Symposium – was a huge success. The Symposium gathered students and industry professionals from all over the country and the world. Representatives from over 15 organisations contributed to the launch of our first symposium. This excellent event offered the chance for over 150 students in attendance to learn more about the specific requirements of trainers, educators, and companies for candidates in various roles and discuss current issues faced by the aviation industry as well as future trends.

Establishment of the Board of Advisors

The IASA Committee establishes the first of IASA’s Board of Advisors – Mark Hegarty (Karman Aviation), Yvonne Thompson (PwC Ireland), Karl Griffin (DAE, formerly AWAS), Steve Kelly (Aer Lingus), Paul Gorey (TUD, formerly DIT), Fergus Wilson (Aer Lingus) and Pat Toner (Aer Advice).

Launch of the Student Handbook

The first issue of the Student Handbook is published. The handbook was designed to showcase various available courses, graduate programmes, internships and other opportunities with an aviation focus in Ireland.

Second Annual Symposium

After the success of the inaugural event, IASA hosts its second Aviation Symposium bringing together over 250 students, academia and industry. The symposium was centered around the theme of the event ‘Nurturing Talent & Innovation in the Irish Aviation Industry’. The event was led by industry guest speakers’ presentations and discussion panels combined with networking opportunities throughout the day, giving attendees the chance to interact with and build contacts within the industry.

IASA exhibits for the first time at Pilot Careers Live Dublin

In partnership with the organisers, IASA exhibits for the first time at Pilot Careers Live Dublin. This event is solely for passionate aviation lovers who wish to pursue a career as a pilot.

IASA attended the first Dublin Aviation Summit in the RDS.

In partnership with Airline Economics, IASA proudly exhibited at the first Dublin Aviation Summit that brought together leading MRO’s, Financial Sectors & Asset Managers from across the industry under the one roof. The event allowed IASA to expand knowledge, find solutions to problems and present ideas amongst one another. Conference speakers discussed a wide variety of topics such as the importance of sustainability and infrastructure, regulations and policies.

Launch of the JAN Series

IASA launches the first JAN (Junior Aviation Networking) Series event in No.25 Fitzwilliam Place with guest speaker, Fergus Wilson – CTO, Aer Lingus. The JAN series enables young professionals in the aviation industry across Ireland to network and build new relationships with like-minded individuals. It provides a platform where members can discuss and learn about latest industry trends through guest speakers.

Launch of the first Career Slingshot event

IASA launches the Career Slingshot events which includes presentations and discussions with key members of leading companies, discussing their career paths to date and their outlook of the future opportunities of particular areas of the aviation industry in Ireland and beyond. We took a dive into the Pilot route for this event where Captain Steve Kelly spoke about Cadetships and flight schools. Interview & CV prep and what to expect from your future career with industry expert Margie Burns, and Valentina Fitzpatrick spoke about maintaining your fitness during training.

Management Committee 2017/2018

Bridget Corry becomes the second elected Chairperson, Ross Quinless, Shane Gorman, Andreea Slabutu and Cian McHugh elected Secretary, Treasurer, Head of Marketing and Student Coordinator respectively.

Third Annual Symposium

IASA hosts its third annual symposium on Digital Transformation in the Aviation Industry & The Next Generation Workforce of Aviation Pioneers. The audience comprised of over 300 young and budding members of the aviation industry learned that in-depth knowledge of technological developments and advances in the fields of avionics, communications, media, and security. One of our keynote speakers, DAE (Dubai Aerospace Enterprise) CEO Firoz Tarapore captivated the audience on how both digitalization of the aviation industry and future pioneers can and will affect the stunning levels of demand for future aviation industry professionals.

Launch of the Monthly Job Opportunities & Industry Newsletter

The first issue of Monthly Job Opportunities & Industry Newsletter is published. Bridget Corry, Chairperson, distinctly captures the need for the new project to attract companies to showcase career opportunities to students.

IASA’s Co-Founder Alexandra Slabutu spoke at the Next Generations of Aviation Professional Global Summit at ICAO HQ in Montreal.

In late 2017, ICAO hosted the Next Generations of Aviation Professional Global Summit (NGAP) to raise awareness regarding the impending shortage of aviation professionals and encourage Civil Aviation Authorities to communicate and cooperate with government education and labour bodies to promote aviation as a profession. IASA’s Co-Founder Alexandra Slabutu spoke at the summit at ICAO HQ in Montreal. In Alexandra’s presentation, she highly encouraged the audience to collaborate and exchange ideas, knowledge, best practices and experiences regarding ICAO’s NGAP related activities with association like IASA. She stated how the aviation community can identify the long-term human resources needs and to establish strategies to attract, educate and retain young aviation professionals.

Second JAN Series event proudly Sponsored by KPMG Ireland

IASA welcomed Tom Woods, Head of Aviation Finance in KPMG Ireland to speak at IASA’s second JAN event accompanied by over 100 young inspired professionals with an interest in aviation. Tom provided the audience with compelling observations of the industry, especially within the leasing sector and how Ireland has a rich background in the leasing industry. The collapse of GPA (Guinness Peat Aviation), which was one of the first leasing companies, encouraged the formation of many leasing companies that are now the best in the world. Tom Woods explained how Ireland is fortunate to have developed treaties for aircraft leasing companies, as the establishment of a strong treaty network is the key element to maintain competitiveness.

IASA exhibits for the second time at Pilot Careers Live Dublin

The Pilot Careers Live event gives attendees the perfect opportunity to discover and learn more about the exciting career paths to become a pilot. IASA continues to grow its newsletter subscribers by 20% from all visiting attendees.

Second Career Slingshot Event

IASA hosted the second event Career Slingshot Series within the Aircraft Leasing Sector. The event included presentations and discussions leading aircraft leasing companies. Aoife Hafner from SMBC Aviation Capital, Mariyan Adanov from DAE, Donal O’Shea and Fiona McAllister from Avolon discussed their career paths to date and their outlook of the global market for aircraft, lease rates and values, in terms of marketing, legal and finance.

Third JAN Series event proudly Sponsored by PwC Ireland

In the summer months of 2018, IASA welcomed over 90 young professionals to our third JAN event with our guest speaker Rachel Frye, Aviation Finance Advisor in PwC Ireland. The event proceeded by a short introduction of our guest speaker by Chairperson Bridget Corry. Bridget briefly spoke about the offerings IASA provides to the audience of the evening and how it can benefit them in the near future. Immediately, Rachel captivated her audience by discussing her passion for the industry she admires so much. In her talk, Rachel emphasised the importance of networking and also spoke about aircraft transitioning to the overall lessor environment.

Management Committee 2018/2019

Gareth Lau becomes the third elected Chairperson, Cian McHugh, Jordan Myers and Mark Kenny elected Secretary, Treasurer and Student Engagement Coordinator respectively.

Launch of Ireland’s Largest and Only Aviation Career Expo

IASA launched Ireland’s first and only aviation career expo in the Crowne Plaza Hotel, Northwood, Santry with over 35 exhibitors and over 450 attendees. We offered companies the opportunity to showcase their graduate programmes, internships, and other career opportunities for students from different disciplines in Ireland and beyond.

IASA takes part in the IGC Fair in Killarney 2018

Irish Guidance Counselor (IGC) Fair was aimed at all Leaving Certificate students in the Kerry, West Cork, and West Limerick region. The purpose was to provide students with an opportunity to meet college representatives, career specialists and employers at a time when they are preparing to make their career choices.

New Industry Advisor Committee Members

Joe O’Mara (KPMG Ireland), Mickael Melaye (Airbus) and Susan Bradford (DAE Capital) join the Industry Advisory Committee.

Fourth Annual Symposium

IASA hosts its fourth annual Symposium on Launching into the Future with the Next Generation of Aviation Professionals in the Helix, Collins Avenue, Dublin 9. This event united aviation professionals and over 200 students to highlight and discuss current trends in the aviation industry and how to start your career in this niche industry. The Symposium had over 20 guest speakers from a wide range of backgrounds from aircraft leasing, engineering, pilot, recruitment and many more.

IASA exhibits third consecutive year at Pilot Careers Live Dublin

The Pilot Careers Live event gives attendees the perfect opportunity to discover and learn more about the exciting career paths to become a pilot.

IASA hosts Third Career Slingshot to expand in the West of Ireland

As a part of IASA’s expansion plan, Gareth Lau, Chairperson recognises the need to host events outside of the Dublin area. IASA held it’s third Career Slingshot in Aviation Engineering at the IAA, Shannon Centre. The event included presentations and discussions from key members of leading engineering companies such as the Irish Aviation Authority, CAE Parc and Lufthansa Technik.

IASA exhibits at the Dublin Aviation Summit 2019

IASA was honoured to exhibit at the Dublin Aviation Summit in the RDS for the third consecutive year. Gareth Lau was Master of Ceremonies at the Training and Recruitment Conference to discuss recruitment strategies and planning when it comes to getting the right candidate along with key members of the aviation industry.

The IASA team was honoured to attend the World Aviation Festival 2019 in London. This remarkable event allowed the team to network and expose IASA with thousands of global leaders in aviation and be inspired by the greatest minds in the industry. There were over 600 speakers from the most successful airlines, airports, and digital intermediaries all in one room.