Patrick Ky – From Wissous to the helm of SESAR
Patrick Ky is the Executive Director of the SESAR Joint Undertaking.
What were you dreaming of becoming when you were a kid?
At first I was dreaming of becoming a football star! In time this changed to pilot… I wanted to be a commercial pilot. We were living in a small place called Wissous, not far from Orly airport in France and I remember going out there at least once a week to watch the planes come and go.
Come to think of it, I remember always having wanted to work with aircraft but flying them was more a kid’s initial fancy. For me the knowledge of how they worked, how they were built, what made them fly in the first place was more exciting than the left seat. It was learning about the technical and engineering aspects that really made my heart beat faster…
I did get a VFR pilot’s license but flying was not the thrill I was expecting. As a student pilot I was very impressed by air traffic control, how they gave you instructions, how they helped you back when you strayed… Actually it was a rather stressful experience and I had to admit to myself that the engineering side of things was more for me.
What were the most significant sideways jumps in your professional life?
Although I have worked in aviation all my life, there were curious sideways moves nevertheless.
Originally I studied aviation economics and when I returned from the USA, I wanted to find work in that field. For some reason, I was offered a post in the software development department of the French DGCA (the equivalent of the CAA). I signed up although the work did not appear to be that appealing to me. Things however took a good turn when my first boss there explained that my “disinterested” attitude was exactly what they needed. They could get all the best software people, he said, but they were always immersed in their codes and algorithms, most of the time doing what they thought they had to do. Me on the other hand, he enthused, would remain sensitive to and execute proper project management… There was my value for them. In the end, I liked the most what I was doing, so I guess his judgment was right on target.
Later on I was working as an aviation consultant and at a certain point I was invited to join one of the big five consulting companies. At almost the same time, an opportunity arose to join EUROCONTROL. As you can imagine, a few sleepless nights followed but in the end my dedication to aviation won and I took the EUROCONTROL job.
What were the most significant events that influenced your professional life?
Looking back in time, I think three events stand out like beacons, with two of them very recent.
When we were building the CFMU (Central Flow Management Unit) and in particular the IFPS (Integrated Initial Flight Plan Processing System), I was really fascinated by the fact that we were creating something completely new and truly European.
Then when the SESAR Definition Phase was launched, I was working at the European Commission and looking at SESAR, I once again had this feeling of something completely new and important taking shape, a very significant first step of something that has never been done before.
Of course the third one is the signing of the SESAR public/private partnership member agreements. The
run-up to this event took place with the Galileo history casting a shadow in the background and many people saying that we would never succeed. With even more partners than in Galileo, SESAR was seen by many as an impossible proposition. Yet we made it!
Was there a person who had a profound influence on your professional life?
I have a lot to thank to my bosses over the years. Especially the first ones had a really significant influence on how I, a young engineer, saw the world and tried to navigate the often turbulent waters of our industry.
I have learned a lot also from my superiors at the European Commission. Most of them had legal backgrounds and they had a lot to offer in terms of useful wisdom for a techie like myself.
Was there a company which had a profound influence on your professional life?
When I first met EUROCONTROL, I was representing the DGCA, nothing more, nothing less and the agency was putting things together (the IFPS for example) for us. When I joined EUROCONTROL myself, one of the first things I had to realize was that those people were breathing, sleeping and thinking Europe and European air traffic management. It was their life, the essence of everything they did. This had a very big impact on me and most certainly changed my outlook on many things.
Was there a “Darth Vader” in your life that you needed to conquer?
No, I did not. There are always people with whom you disagree, but that is part of professional life and there are always solutions.
If you had a second chance, would you try to avoid aviation as a career?
No, definitely not. I think I made the right choice and would not hesitate to walk the same road again.
Would you recommend aviation as a career to young people to-day?
I have two kids, 13 and 16 years old and we discuss this question often. I most certainly do not encourage them to look to aviation as their future and I would not recommend it to others either.
There are so many new fields that are much more innovative, that have huge potential and are very exciting. Think about water processing, sustainable development, nano-technology, just to name a few.
There are many scientific research areas with a tremendous amount of work to be done. True, there is some research potential in aviation also but in comparison with the other areas, there are less innovation opportunities in my feeling.
What personal traits should young people develop first and foremost?
They should have genuine curiosity and they must always do what they believe is the right thing. This is true in all areas, not only aviation.
What was the funniest, aviation related situation you can recall having been in?
Although they were not really funny when they were happening, I have two events that make me smile now when I think back…
On one occasion, we landed at a certain European airport and then had to wait 3 hours in the plane because all the ground crew had gone home…
They had to call them back one by one to re-start the handling process.
On another occaison, we were about to depart from Paris Orly airport, when one of the pilots got sick and the airline had to arrange for a replacement crew. This was promptly done but there was one small problem… The replacement crew reported for duty at Charles De Gaulle airport. For us all this came down to a delay of some 5 hours.
In conclusion?
I think the most important message is that if we work together, we will succeed. This is the principle of SESAR and I am convinced it is the right basis.
In Aire, a part of SESAR, dealing with the development of greener technologies the partners are obliged to work together very closely and the results are nothing short of spectacular. The main thing is, what they are doing makes sense from an environmental point of view, the focus of the project. Their progress is amazing.
Working together for clear and agreed goals is the key to success and the best foundation for benefits from any project, SESAR included.
SESAR needs very focused objectives and clear requirements for all activities to succeed.
Communication both top down and bottom up is key and opportunities to allow working together in an open, honest, blame free environment will build the strong relationships necessary to get through the inevitable turbulence.
A Positive approach.
Since SESAR is largely EU backed project, what is the scope for Avionics Engineers joining the project residing in the non EU member state.
Hi Kiran,
Welcome to Roger-Wilco!
Your question has been forwarded to the SESAR Joint Undertaking who will I am sure respond in due time.
Hi Kiran,
We do have 2 non-EU cies as members of the SESAR Joint Undertaking: Honeywell + one part of a consortium: northhrop grumman. To become a member of the SJU, your company needed to follow a strict procurement process (now closed). For further opportunity if membership, more news in the course of 2010. As an employee, you indeed need to be of a EU country of a country getting the support from Eurocontrol (eg. Turkey, Norway, Ukraine, etc). In each job vacancy, we indicate the requirements; see section ‘job’ on our website for more details. Best Regards, Eric