Duke Hosts NAE Regional Meeting Focused on Aviation

The full spectrum of prevailing headwinds and optimistic opportunities in the modern commercial aviation industry was on full display recently at Duke University. Some conversations focused on the realities of incorporating AI and autonomy into an increasingly outdated air traffic control system. Others were filled with excited proclamations about the industry’s rising levels of talent and investments.

On both sides of the aerospace coin, there was much to take away from the first regional meeting of the National Academy of Engineering (NAE) to be held at Duke.

Called “Smarter Skies, More Resilient Systems: The Future of Commercial Aviation,” the three-day event took place between May 19 and 21, 2026. Featuring 18 NAE members, nearly 30 industry professionals and many of the nation’s leading academics focused on aerospace topics, the regional meeting provided a glimpse into what’s next for the burgeoning industry.

The invited speakers program kicked off Wednesday morning with introductory remarks from Alec Gallimore, Duke’s provost, an aerospace engineer and an NAE member, who described its main challenge: how to build a commercial aviation system that can be more resilient to growing operational stress, aging infrastructure and increasingly severe weather.

“We know the commercial aviation system is facing a host of challenges related to customer satisfaction, economics and innovation,” Gallimore said. “Imagine how much worse things could get by the mid- and late 2030s, especially if extreme weather events become more prevalent and intense.”

Tsu-Jae Liu, president of NAE, said the regional meeting reflects the organization’s mission to convene experts around urgent engineering challenges and help shape future directions in research, policy and investment.

“The presentations and discussions here will influence the direction of research and help guide future investments, including by the federal government, toward the vision of smarter skies and more resilient systems,” Liu said.

Jerome Lynch, the Vinik Dean of Engineering at Duke, highlighted North Carolina’s deep ties to aviation and aerospace, from the Wright brothers’ first flight at Kitty Hawk to the state’s growing aerospace economy and research ecosystem.

“This is a critically important topic for Duke University, our state and our nation,” Lynch said.

The John Cocke Distinguished Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE) Yiran Chen and the Marie Foote Reel E’46 Distinguished Professor and Chair of ECE Hai “Helen” Li, who both helped organize the meeting, both described the event as an opportunity to learn from the diverse perspectives of aviation convened.

After these introductory remarks, the meeting kicked into full gear with the first two keynote speakers and an energetic panel discussion. After a broad look at the NAE’s long history in aerospace, speakers took a deep dive into the growing urgency for modernizing air traffic systems.

In shorter talks, panel speakers then delved into additional industry and research perspectives on the multi-faceted upgrades needed, including quieter and more efficient aircraft design, safe integration of drones and air taxis, and the modernization of air traffic control.

In the day’s second session, keynote speakers recounted the thinking behind the unorthodox designs that led to the successful launch of HondaJet before moving into an overview of the various places where autonomy could already be incorporated into aircraft and airspace systems.

In lightning talks, speakers focused on transportation and structural perspectives before two panel sessions closed out the day. The first panel moved between technology, the human element and audience questions about how quickly the industry can move. The day’s final session focused on how technology, operations, industry and policy must align to implement the various systems discussed during the day at scale.

The third and final session of the regional meeting took place the following morning on Thursday, May 21. As aviation evolves toward increasingly autonomous and integrated systems, the session explored new business models and operational frameworks that are emerging.

The day’s first keynote looked at relatively low-hanging opportunities for introducing autonomous systems into existing workflows. The second talk of the day took a broad insider’s look at the ideas in which investors are currently infusing new capital and where new market opportunities are likely to open in the near and long-term future.

The keynote speakers were followed by shorter panelist talks about NASA’s pursuit of potentially transformative aviation technologies and the potential security threats posed to control systems and networks by the possible inclusion of AI and other autonomous systems.

The group then came together for a question and answer session, where they addressed topics such as the potential for electric airplane startups, the need for regulatory agencies to reassess what constitutes too much risk and new business models that might arise from emerging technology.