Meet Vertical Aerospace new Chief Engineer - Tim Williams

Vertical Aerospace has appointed Tim Williams to the role of Chief Engineer to help drive Vertical towards its vision of electric flight for everyone. Tim, formerly a Chief Engineer at Rolls-Royce, will be responsible for leading the development of the new eVTOL aircraft being developed by Vertical – this will be the third prototype built by Vertical as the look to certify by 2024. Once certified, it will have a usable range of 100 miles at speeds of 150mph, carrying four passengers and one pilot. Tim has always adopted an agile and lean working practice which fits well with Vertical Aerospace's company ethos in pushing forward the development of their latest aircraft.    

Tim Williams said:  “As we enter the next stage of aviation, developing on demand, carbon free air transport to tackle the worlds urban mobility challenge, I am thrilled to join Vertical Aerospace, a company at the forefront in developing the technology that will be needed. I have been particularly impressed with what the company has achieved in its short history, harnessing the pace and agility from Formula 1, the progress that the company has made has been remarkable. I am really excited about joining the fantastic team and leading the development and certification of the new aircraft.” 

Vertical Aerospace CEO Michael Cervenka said:  “Following a comprehensive global search, we are absolutely delighted to have Tim join us in our exciting endeavor developing world-leading sustainable aircraft. Tim brings enormous engineering prowess and experience, but just as importantly an empowering leadership style and passion for challenging the status quo that fits perfectly with Vertical’s pioneering ethos.” 

Vertical Aerospace is continuing to work alongside aviation authorities around the world and plans to have a certified eVTOL by 2024. They also continue to build strategic partnerships with global leaders such as Honeywell, who are developing the flight controller for their latest aircraft. The aim is to disrupt the trillion-dollar commercial aviation market.  

Tim brings a tremendous 34 years of aerospace experience to the team with a proven track record leading large teams in developing and delivering new product as well as supporting established products in service. During his time at Rolls-Royce, Tim has held numerous leadership positions including Chief Design Engineer and Chief Project Engineer. He has spent the past 10 years as a Chief Engineer, accountable for a wide range of combat, transport and helicopter engines. Tim has worked on programmes at all stages of their lifecycle. One highlight of his career was taking the RTM322 helicopter engine through its Civil Certification Process, which involved a high level of high engineering support across the globe.  

Most recently, he led the engineering team to support a large service fleet of military engines across the world. He had technical accountability for product safety and integrity, technical strategy, product development, certification and in-service continuous improvement across a wide range of engine programs.  

COVID-19 has undeniably seen the emergence of unprecedented times and many businesses find themselves faced with new situations and challenges. Tim will, under very unusual circumstances, be joining us as we all work remotely from home. One of the main outcomes of COVID-19 is that many businesses are having to adapt and work from home for the first time, including the whole team at Vertical Aerospace. As a pioneering start-up, the steps we have already taken to fully leverage the power of the cloud and the very latest software platforms has enabled us to seamlessly transition to collaborative remote working. We are happy to report that we continue to make fantastic progress, are working very efficiently and effectively and hope that everyone is keeping well and staying safe.