ABOUT

Welcome at the European Rotorcraft Forum in Venice!

It is a great pleasure to welcome you to the 51st ERF on behalf of the International Committee and our national partners. Following the yearly country rotation this year’s forum is hosted in Italy  by the patronage of AIDAA as a member of the Council of European Aerospace Societies CEAS and with great support and contributions from the Italian Leonardo Helicopter Division company, Marina Militare Italiana and Politecnico di Milano among many others.


I’m glad that distinguished guests and speakers are willing to share their views with you. We will offer you an attractive conference program with high quality papers on relevant topics, the latest developments, innovative concepts and smart technical solutions to the challenges coming from our sector.


I’m sure the forum at the historical venue of Arsenale di Venezia will provide you with the opportunity to broaden your network of contacts, share best practices and exchange your experiences with others during this premier event of the European rotorcraft community. In a unique context capable to mix the latest technological cutting edge solutions and researches with the heritage of this unique and full of history ancient town.


Welcome at the 51st European Rotorcraft Forum and enjoy your stay in the beautiful city of Venice!


Luca Medici

Luca Medici, Chairman of the local organizing committee

About ERF

The European Rotorcraft Forum is one of the premier events in the rotorcraft community’s calendar bringing together manufacturers, research establishments, academia, operators and regulatory agencies to discuss advances in research, development, design, manufacturing, testing and operation of rotorcraft.


The ERFs are special events for the international rotorcraft community and many of us might even remember past ERFs as significant milestones in our careers – maybe the first public presentation for a PhD student, or a report on a multi-national collaborative research venture, the description of new technologies or operational capability for a development programme or the first announcement of new draft regulations. All these things and more can be found in the rich portfolio of a typical ERF. The ERF International Committee, responsible for the technical programme of the Forum, aims to provide a window on the rotorcraft world, to stimulate discussion and even provoke innovation.


The Forum takes place annually across Europe, rotating around the United Kingdom, Germany, France, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, Russia and Switzerland. The ERF is being organized by the various national aeronautical societies and co-batched by CEAS. The first ERF was held in Southampton, England, in 1975.

Find more information on the corporate website: www.rotorcraft-forum.eu

Luca Medici

International Committee


Each nation is at its turn host for the forum. The members of the IC are representing for each nation the rotorcraft national industry and the national academia.


The ERF IC composition is a guarantee to set each year the high level scientific and technic presentations (by the permanence of the members).


Pierluigi CAPONE, Zurich University of Applied Science (ZHAW), Winterthur, Switzerland

Rainer HEGER, Airbus Helicopters Deutschland GmbH, Donauwörth, Germany

Alan IRWIN, Leonardo UK, Yeovil, United Kingdom

Arnaud LE PAPE, ONERA, Palaiseau, France

Pierangelo MASARATI, Politecnico di Milano, Milano, Italy

Luca MEDICI, Leonardo Helicopters S.p.A., Cascina Costa Di Samarate - Varese, Italy

Stefan van 't Hoff, National Aerospace Laboratory, The Netherlands

Klausdieter PAHLKE, DLR, Braunschweig, Germany

Marc Höfinger, DLR, Braunschweig, Germany

Neil TAYLOR, Defence Science and Technology Laboratory, Fareham, United Kingdom

Sebastian TOPCZEWSKI, Warsaw University of Technology, Warsaw, Poland

ERF Awards

The ERF International Committee honors outstanding technical excellence by presenting special awards for high-quality technical papers at the European Rotorcraft Forum (ERF). These awards aim to encourage continuous improvement in technical excellence and to recognize authors who make significant contributions through their papers and presentations.

Ian Cheeseman Award

This award is given to the author(s) of the most outstanding technical paper presented at European Rotorcraft forum 2025, as judged by their peers. The winning paper is presented at the next Forum of the Vertical Flight Society (VFS).

Patfield Award

This award recognizes the best young author(s) (aged 30 or younger) who have prepared and presented an exceptional technical paper. Selected by their peers, the recipient(s) receive a copy of Helicopter Flight Dynamics by Prof. Gareth Padfield, personally inscribed by the author.

Chairman Award

Introduced in 2017, this award honors the best paper focusing on International Cooperation. The winner is invited to present the paper at the Asian/Australian Rotorcraft Forum (ARF).

International Collaborations

The Vertical Flight Society

The Vertical Flight Society (VFS) is the world’s oldest and largest technical society dedicated to advancing vertical flight technology. the Society's mission is to "advance the theory and practices of the science of vertical flight aircraft." Please visit www.vtol.org

The Asian-Australian Rotorcraft Forum

The Asian-Australian Rotorcraft Forum (ARF) is an annual conference focused on advancing rotorcraft technology and fostering collaboration in the Asia-Pacific region.