ITU Aerospace Engineering Alumnus Received the 2026 Tony LeVier Flight Test Safety Award

Our Aerospace Engineering bachelor's graduate Tarık Türkmen won the 2026 Tony LeVier Flight Test Safety Award. By developing a new flight test technique and contributing to flight test safety and its literature, our graduate became the first and only Turk to win this prestigious award.

The North American Flight Test Safety Workshop, organized by the Flight Test Safety Committee (FTSC) and the Society of Experimental Test Pilots (SETP), was held in Fort Worth, Texas, USA, on May 5-6, 2026. On the final day of the workshop, the 2026 Flight Test Safety Awards were presented to their recipients.

Tarık Türkmen, a 2017 graduate of our Aerospace Engineering Department, was deemed worthy of the 2026 Tony LeVier Flight Test Safety Award. Tarık Türkmen shared the award with Markus Scherdel and Stepen Stepen from Dornier Seawings GmbH in Germany, where he currently works as the Lead Flight Test Engineer.

The prestigious award was presented to Tarık Türkmen for:

"His contribution to flight test safety and literature by developing a new flight test technique within the scope of the flight tests of the amphibious seaplane project he is currently working on."

Noting that the Tony LeVier Flight Test Safety Award has been given to approximately 30 flight test professionals worldwide to date, our graduate said, "I am also experiencing the happiness of being the first and only Turk on the list."

To watch a YouTube video of the tests conducted in Norway in the fall of 2025: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XLRRoIHpqsA

About the Tony LeVier Flight Test Safety Award

The Tony LeVier Flight Test Safety Award was established by the Flight Test Safety Committee (FTSC) to formally honor a single individual or a small team that has recently made a significant contribution to the field of flight test safety directed toward:

• The flight test community as a whole,
• A specific organization,
• A special program,
• Or a singular event.

This award is strictly exclusive to achievements and contributions in the field of flight test safety.

The custom flight helmet, which serves as the symbol of the award, is officially presented by the award's corporate sponsor (The Gentex Corporation) at the North American Flight Test Safety Workshop held in the spring of each year.

Official award page: https://www.flighttestsafety.org/awards/35-awards/information/54-tony-levier-flight-test-safety-award

Presentation titled “Modernized Flight Test Technique for Porpoising Boundary Investigation” delivered by Tarık Türkmen during the workshop: https://www.flighttestsafety.org/2026-fort-worth-tx/42-workshops/569-modernized-flight-test-technique-for-porpoising-boundary-investigation