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Mr

Declan Saunders

Research Student

Aerospace and Aviation

Orcid identifier0009-0003-3670-2979
  • Research Student
    Aerospace and Aviation

BIO

Declan is a PhD student at Cranfield University, for the Faculty of Engineering and Applied Sciences. 

Currently, he is working as a causal reserach assistant at Cranfield University, supporting the delivery of course material and support students throughout their studies. 

 

Declan has a BEng in Aeronucatical Engineering at Staffordshire University, where he spent 1 year with Airbus Helicopter in Donauworth, Germany as a software test/ regresssion test engineer. During his time, he developed training material for pilots on various platforms, such as the H135, H145, and H160. Declan was responsible for extensive flight simualtion testing and reporting defects to the software team prior to delivery to both commerical and military operators. Declan recieved two awards from the Institution of Mechical Engineers (IMechE) for his BEng thesis for 2022. 

 

Declan has an MSc in Safety and Human Factors in Aviation at Cranfield University. While at Cranfield University, Declan has published several journal and conference papers. Declan has been awarded the Silver Award in the World Usabilut Design Challenge (WUI) at the 28th International Conference on Human-Computer Interaction International (HCII 2026) for his work on AR Applications for Future Flight Deck: System Usability and User Experience. 

 

 

DEGREES

  • PhD
    Cranfield University, Cranfield, United Kingdom4 Feb 2026 - present
  • MSc
    Cranfield University, Cranfield, United Kingdom17 Oct 2022 - 11 Sep 2023
  • BEng
    University of Staffordshire, Stoke-on-Trent, United Kingdom10 Sep 2018 - 26 Aug 2022

CERTIFICATIONS

  • Best Student Aeronautical Engineering Award at Staffordshire University
    University of Staffordshire, Stoke-on-Trent, United Kingdom23 Sep 2022 - 23 Sep 2022
  • Best Final Project Aeronautical Engineering Award at Staffordshire University
    University of Staffordshire, Stoke-on-Trent, United Kingdom23 Sep 2022 - 23 Sep 2022
  • Silver Prize for World Usability Design Challenge
    Human Computer Interaction28 Jul 2026 - 28 Jul 2026

PERSON TYPE

  • Research Student

CRANFIELD AREAS OF EXPERTISE