Branch Management Team
President
 Gordon McConnell BSc CEng FRAeSGordon was born in Ayr and studied Mechanical Engineering at Paisley College of Technology, now UWS. He joined Scottish Aviation in 1975 as a Stress Engineer and worked on the Bulldog, Jetstream and BAe146 programmes. From 1988 he was Chief Engineer on the Jetstream 41 programme and subsequently Technical Director, BAe Systems Regional Aircraft. He joined Airbus in 1997 in Toulouse as Chief Engineer for the A340-500/-600 aircraft. After a three-year spell in Filton, he returned to Toulouse in 2007 as Chief Engineer on the A350. Upon retiring from Airbus in 2014, Gordon formed a consultancy company Arran Aeronautics Ltd and was awarded the RAeS Gold Medal for ‘work of an outstanding nature in aerospace’. |
Executive Team
 Chairman John Russell BSc CEng MIMechE MRAeS John was born in Renfrewshire and brought up and educated in Glasgow. His first flight was in a BEA Vickers Viscount, an event that triggered an interest in all things mechanical and aeronautical. After graduating from Glasgow University, John joined Caledonian Airmotive at Prestwick in 1990, initially as a logistics analyst but quickly moving into powerplant engineering. He was Chief Engineer at what later became GE Caledonian from 2003 until 2011. After a spell working from GE Services Engineering, but still based at the Prestwick site, John left GE to join Parc Aviation as a powerplant consultant supporting aircraft and engine leasing companies - GECAS between 2013 and 2022, and Shannon Engine Support Ltd. since 2022. John has served on the Committee (on and off) since 2005. |
 Secretary John Stevens BScBorn and raised in Ayrshire, John joined SAL as an apprentice in 1975, moving to the Design Office on the launch of the Jetstream 31 program. He attained a BSc in Engineering and Maths with the Open University. In a career spanning 45 years at Prestwick, John has been involved in Engineering and Support across a wide range of British aircraft including, Bulldog, Jetstream, ATP, HS 748, 146/Avro RJ, Nimrod and Typhoon, latterly as Head of Customer Support at BAE SYSTEMS. |
 Treasurer Andy GribbleAndy was born in West Africa, so he spent a lot of his childhood flying with WAAC and BOAC – his first flights were on a Bristol Freighter and an Argonaut. On returning to Cornwall, he joined the Air Training Corps and got his gliding wings. He joined the CAA, as an ATCO in 1973, and trained at Hurn Airport, Edinburgh Airport and LATCC. He also obtained a PPL, now lapsed. He spent 15 years doing tower and approach radar at Aberdeen Airport and a short time at Heathrow approach. Andy transferred to the Scottish Centre in 1992 and validated as a radar controller on most sectors. He joined the RAeS committee as Treasurer in 2013, on retiring from NATS. |
Events Team
 Team Leader Allan MackintoshAllan's working background is in pharmaceuticals but, being brought up close to Prestwick Airport, he has had a life-long interest in the airfield and in airline and airport operations. This passion was fuelled by summer working at Prestwick, when a student at Glasgow University, and also by being a frequent flyer with many airlines, including British Midland, British Airways, and Fly-Be amongst several others. Allan presently runs historical walking and virtual tours (Info@prestwickaviationtours.com) telling the story of Prestwick since 1913, along with promoting what is happening today across the airfield cluster of aerospace companies. He joined the committee in the Autumn of 2024. |
 Captain Rod WinhallBorn in Kingston-upon-Thames. Rod Winhall joined the ATC at school, which led to service as a Direct Entry pilot, ending on Shackletons at St Mawgan. After RAF service, Rod instructed at White Waltham for 7 years and flew for Vickers Shipbuilding's Communications Flight and later for Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC) from Prestwick. After DEC was taken over, Rod joined NetJets Europe on the Hawker 800XP fleet, which was then just three aircraft; 10 years later that fleet had 46 aircraft and over 250 pilots, with Rod being one of four training captains. Portuguese rules meant retiring from flying the line at 60, and he then carried out flight simulator assessments of employment candidates; flew post-maintenance test flights at Hawarden for release to line, especially those requiring stalling checks; ferried 15 new aircraft from Little Rock, USA, to Lisbon and also flew Vodafone’s HS125-800. He has 17,645 hours on 17 aircraft types. |
 David Carson BSc CEng FIETBy profession, Dave is an Electrical Engineer although he has always had a keen interest in aviation and aeronautical engineering. He joined the local office of the Electricity Board (SSEB) from university and had a wide range of roles and opportunities (including low level helicopter power line patrols) throughout Ayrshire before moving to the Glasgow Head Office of the business (now ScottishPower). His final role in ScottishPower before retiring was as the System Design Manager for the Transmission and Distribution networks in southern Scotland and the Distribution network in Merseyside and North Wales |
Communications Team
 Team Leader Ray DraperRay was born in Liverpool. Initially an ATC Assistant at Liverpool Airport and Ulster Radar, he was selected for controller training in 1970. Eight years at West Drayton followed before moving to Tiree in 1981 as ATCO/Aerodrome Manager, moving to the same role at Stornoway in 1982. After a brief stay in Edinburgh, Ray moved to Scottish Centre in 1988 and qualified on most of the civil sectors. He subsequently took on a number of training, development and operational management roles, retiring in 2009. He is married to Odile and has two grown-up children. Ray joined the Committee in 2007. |
  Athena Wu BEng(Hons)Athena studied Aeronautical Engineering at Loughborough University with a year in industry spent in Cambridge at Marshall Aerospace where she also worked post-graduation. In 2018 she joined the Spirit Aerosystems Research & Technology team in Prestwick looking at composite development. In 2021, sustainability became her main focus. On a short contract with the Scottish Government as Sustainable Aviation champion, Athena looked at ways to safeguard manufacturing jobs and R&D in Scotland as part of the Aerospace Response Group remit. Today Athena is a Sustainability Analyist for Strategy & Development at The Boeing Company, where she is also a STEM focal and a Learning Ambassador. She volunteers at The Internal Aerospace Environmental Group WG12 for life cycle analysis and works on circularity. She has been supporting Primary Engineering for a number of years. |
Paul Guthrie
Paul had a strong interest in aviation from a young age which saw him study Aeronautical Engineering at Glasgow University. After he graduated, Paul spent 4 years at QinetiQ in Bedfordshire working in vehicle dynamic modelling before returning to Ayrshire as a Research and Development Engineer at Goodrich. A couple of company name changes and fifteen years later Paul is now a Senior Manager with the Global Chemical Substance Office at Collins Aerospace. Passionate about ensuring the aerospace industry embraces new green technologies, chemicals and processes by working collaboratively with other aerospace companies and suppliers. Paul has been a member of the Royal Aeronautical Society since a student and has received his Charted Engineer status from the Engineering Council.
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Tom Moffat BEng (Hons)
Tom has been interested in engineering and aviation from an early age and developed this by joining Spirit Aerosystems, Prestwick, as an apprentice in 2009. He then worked on the shop floor as a fitter on Boeing 777, 767, Airbus A320 and A350 fixed leading edge structures before moving into manufacturing engineering, and is now an Industrial Engineer at Prestwick Aerosystems (formerly Spirit). During this time Tom also completed a degree in Engineering Design and Manufacture at the University of Strathclyde, graduating in 2022. Tom is particularly interested in the rich history of aviation at Prestwick and its associated industries.
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John Moran
John, spent 37 years working for Rolls-Royce, across a number of different sites in the UK. He has a background in combustion system design and development. He developed and designed the afterburner systems for several of the UK’s front-line aircraft. He has also designed combustion systems for the UK naval fleet and ultra-low pollution systems for industrial land-based engines.
John had a number of management roles and was responsible corporately for the combustion technology acquisition across all the company’s business sectors. He finished his career as corporate specialist for combustion he was also an associate fellow.
Since 2016, John has been Professor in Practice of Combustion technology at Loughborough University. He was heavily involved in the establishment of the new National Combustion and Aerothermal Technology Centre at Loughborough University.
Outreach Team
 Team Leader Giorgio Bindoni BScGiorgio was born in Spain from Italian parents and grew up in Madrid until age 12. Back in Italy he joined the Nunziatella Military School in 1967 and then the Italian Air Force Academy, from which he graduated as First Lieutenant and Military Pilot in 1974. After 25 years as fixed and rotary wing pilot, Giorgio left the Air Force with the rank of Colonel and joined the United Nations in New York as the first Chief of the Aviation Safety Unit in the Department of Peacekeeping Operations (DPKO) in 1996. Eight years later he returned to Europe and settled in Ayr. For the last 17 years Giorgio has worked as Aviation Advisor and Auditor, primarily for the Oil and Gas and Mining Industries. Giorgio is also a full member if ISASI, the International Society of Air Safety Investigators. |
Young Persons Network
Shubh Birari
Hi, I’m Shubh, the Young Persons Network (YPN) Representative for the RAeS Prestwick Branch. I work as a Technical Engineer and have a background in aircraft maintenance, airworthiness, and safety. I joined the Society to stay connected with the aerospace community and to support young professionals like myself. I hold a Master’s degree in Aviation Engineering & Management. I’m currently working towards gaining professional registration. I enjoy working with others and want to help inspire the next generation of aerospace professionals.