Meeting with Marwan Lahoud (S1989), appointed Chairman of the Board of ISAE-SUPAERO on 28 August 2023

You graduated from ISAE-SUPAERO in 1989 and have been at the head of the Board since 28 August. Why did you accept this mandate? What are your ambitions for the School?

Getting involved in the School’s governing bodies is a way of giving back a little of what the Institute has given me. I learnt my trade there, and thanks to it I had my first experiences in aeronautics.

Aeronautics and space are undergoing a revolution, and we need to attract talent to these fields more than ever. Our mission is to ensure that young women and men with an appetite for science and technology are enchanted and dream of flying – just like I did when I was their age!

As Chairman of the Board, my role is to steer the governance of the School, to participate in and facilitate the definition of a strategy and to assist the management in its execution. There can be no good strategy without the resources to back it up. We have the unfailing support of the Ministry of the Armed Forces and the Ministry of Higher Education and Research, but raising private funds is essential, and I will be looking at these aspects as a priority.

Historically, ISAE-SUPAERO has strong links with the French aerospace industry and has provided it with its great pioneers and leaders. The worldwide influence of the School and the French aerospace industry are closely linked, and it is certainly this model of ‘French engineering’ applied to such demanding fields that today positions ISAE-SUPAERO among the few French higher education and research establishments whose recognition extends well beyond our borders. Today, ISAE-SUPAERO’s work and talent continue to influence the aerospace industry and research, not only in France but also in Europe.

The pillars of the Institute are training, research and innovation: what are the School’s major challenges in each of these areas, to keep pace with the changes in the sector?

Our ambition is to be the world’s leading aerospace training institute and to attract the best students from all 5 continents. To achieve this, our training must be world-class. We have a very high quality teaching staff, and we need to give them the resources to maintain the level of excellence for which the School is renowned.

As far as research is concerned, I have seen the high level of scientific production at ISAE-SUPAERO. We need to develop and accentuate this, because we can’t conceive of training at the highest level in the world without research of the same quality. The two are intimately connected.

With regard to the last pillar, I was attracted not only by everything that revolves around entrepreneurship and innovation, but also by the encouragement that students receive from professors and the entire ecosystem of the school to launch innovative projects and start-ups. We must continue to offer them this favourable environment. Our reputation must act as an accelerator and facilitator for these promising young start-ups to find funding, support and markets.

In your opinion, what are the assets of an ISAE-SUPAERO graduate to face the major challenges of tomorrow’s industry and society? Do engineers have a special role to play?

Today, we are witnessing a shift in the challenges facing modern society, which is putting the engineer back at the centre of this evolution. After a period focused on management and administration, when it came to decarbonisation, digitisation and the resumption of space exploration and conquest, science and technological development are back in the limelight. Engineers hold the keys to meeting these challenges.

Take decarbonisation, for example. ISAE-SUPAERO engineers naturally have a major role to play in this revolution. Despite changes in behaviour and the implementation of energy-saving measures, the demand for air travel will continue to grow, particularly in regions outside Europe. ISAE-SUPAERO engineers have a historic responsibility to the planet and to society, because they have the means to design the low-carbon aircraft of tomorrow.

Could you tell us about your career path and the reasons behind your choices?

I started out as a test engineer at the Landes Test Centre within DGA, a position with a strong technical dimension. If I have one piece of advice to give to young graduates and students, it’s not to be in too much of a hurry to get into management. The best years of my professional life were spent on technical matters and watching things fly!

I then took up a position with the French government and later switched to aircraft manufacturing, because I was afraid of becoming a technocrat and I wanted to get back to basics. So I joined AIRBUS (formerly Aérospatiale, Matra and EADS). In 2017, I decided to evolve my profession, and I joined Tikehau Capital to work on financing the aerospace industry. We are now one of the leading investors in this field.

What is your best memory of ISAE-SUPAERO?

I’d say two of them: the friendships I made and the community life. I was an Armament engineer and didn’t live on campus. That didn’t stop me from having a full social life as well as a rich academic life. I spent a lot of time in the halls of residence and in the hostel, and in the very first week I joined the rugby team. We took part in sporting events all over the region, and travelled to England, Ireland and Scotland: I have some unforgettable memories. I wouldn’t be complete without mentioning our third-year studies inspector and rugby coach Joël Daste, with whom I’ve kept in touch to this day. The friends I made then are still the friends I make today. Among them, I would like to mention Valérie Guillemet, HR Director at Dassault Aviation, who also recently joined the School’s Board.