Dr. Lakshmi Sankar’s collaborative research on the resolution of rotocraft icing issues has been recognized with a prestigious Howard Hughes Award by the American Helicopter Society.

Sankar and his seven industry and government collaborators will officially receive the honor during AHS 70th Annual Forum & Technology Display, to be held May 21 in Montréal, Québec, Canada.

The multi-faceted research team is being recognized for its project, NRTC/VLC High Fidelity Icing Analysis and Validation Team, which is exploring fundamental aspects of rotorcraft icing and the validation of an icing analysis tool suite. The team predicts that the research will ultimately allow the industry to improve safety, reduce costs, and minimize maintenance scheduling for certification and qualification of rotorcraft.

Joining Sankar in receiving the Howard Hughes Award will be representatives from Bell Helicopter Textron Inc., The Boeing Company, the NASA Glenn Research Center, Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation, and the U.S. Army (Aviation Development Directorate).

After receiving news of the award, Sankar was quick to point out that he has worked closely with several graduate students on this project, including Jeremy Bain, Jeewoong Kim, Eliya Wing, Dennis Garza, and Dr. Ritu Marpu.

“This recognition on the Georgia Tech side would not be possible without all the hard work, late nights, and hundreds of hours on team meetings that our dedicated graduate students spent on this project,” said Sankar.

“Working alongside them, I can say they are a very valuable team, worthy of equal recognition for their tireless work.”

A Regents Professor and Associate Chair, Dr. Lakshmi Sankar  is an AIAA Fellow, a Technical Fellow of the American Helicopter Society, and a member of both the American Society of Engineering Educators and the American Society of Mechanical Engineers.