Mr Michael Daniel, International Aviation Safety Consultant
Former Senior Manager, Federal Aviation Administration

Mr Daniel is an expert in civil aviation safety & regulatory oversight and has more than 30 years of experience working in various positions and offices in the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). He is an authority on FAA and IASA programmes, Air Services Agreements, Air Operator Certification, SMS independent reviews and audits, Aircraft Certification, Maintenance & Aircraft Airworthiness Lease Clauses, Continuing Airworthiness and Cost/Risk Efficiencies, 145 MRO, Business Aviation and Airline Management. He is also an expert in the auditing and inspection of aviation Safety and Standards.

Dr Leo Jeoh, Founder and CEO
STATE Aviation Pte. Ltd.

Leo is the founder of STATE Aviation, a consultancy building capabilities in Aviation Safety, Advanced Air Mobility (AAM), and Flight Test Engineering. A former RSAF Senior Officer and Flight Test Engineer, Leo has extensive leadership experience in rotary-wing and unmanned aircraft systems, with roles spanning structural repair, non-destructive inspection, and aerodynamics. He later joined Airbus, holding key leadership roles including Deputy Vice President for Support Engineering, Head of Aviation Safety, and Head of Design for helicopters in Asia-Pacific. As Head of Airbus’ Skyways Program and UTM Lab in Singapore, he led pioneering work in urban and maritime UAS delivery systems. Leo holds a PhD in Engineering Product Design, alongside a B.Eng in Solid-State Engineering Physics and M.Sc. in Materials Science and Engineering. Leo also serves in advisory roles to Nanyang Technological University, Ngee Ann Polytechnic, and regulatory bodies on AAM policy, standards, and regulations.

Mr Ivan Neo
Former Executive VP Operations, SIAEC

Mr Ivan Neo began his career with Singapore Airlines in 1975, serving in various roles within the Engineering Division before joining SIA Engineering Company (SIAEC) in 1992. He was appointed Senior Vice President in 2007, then served as Executive Vice President, Operations from 2016 before retiring in 2022, concluding a career spanning nearly five decades. He has held numerous Board Director appointments and served as Chairman of several joint venture companies in Singapore and Hong Kong. He was also the Accountable Manager for Part 145 approvals granted by multiple airworthiness authorities and holds an Aircraft Maintenance Engineer’s Licence issued by CAAS.

Mr Soh Chee Siong
General Manager – Factory Projects, Singapore Aero Engine Services Private Limited

Mr Soh has over 45 years of aerospace component manufacturing experience. He started his career with Hamilton Sundstrand Pacific Aerospace Pte Ltd, a fully-owned subsidiary of UTC Aerospace Systems in 1975. He rose through the ranks to be Plant Manager of Hamilton Sundstrand’s Changi Plant. He joined Rolls-Royce Singapore Pte Ltd as Operations Director in April 2010, leading a  team to set up the Wide Chord Fan Blade manufacturing facility in Seletar Aerospace Park. Mr Soh later joined JEP Precision Engineering Pte Ltd and was appointed its President and the Managing Director of Dolphin Engineering. Both are home grown SMEs, manufacturing precision components and fabrication for Aerospace, Oil & Gas, and Electronics industries.

Mr. Mervyn Sirisena
Former SVP Engineering, SIA Engineering Company

Mervyn has served various appointments in SIA and SIA Engineering Company (SIAEC) since 1975. He was appointed President and Chief Operating Officer of SIAEC in March 2000, assisting the Deputy Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. He saw the Company through its first IPO, when SIAEC was listed on 12 May 2000. In April 2001, he returned to SIA, as its Senior Vice President Engineering, heading the Engineering Division before his retirement in 2015. After his retirement Mr Sirisena took on appointments as Chairman of SIA Engineering (Philippines) Corporation (SIAEP) and Aviation Partnership (Philippines) Corporation (APlus); Director Boeing Asia Pacific Aviation Services (BAPAS); Vice President (Education) of Institute of Engineers, Singapore (IES) and Cerebral Palsy Alliance Singapore Board Member (CPAS). Mervyn is now sharing his experiences acquired in his working years, by working with IES to provide experiential training for young engineers.

Mr Tan Lye Teck
Executive Vice President, Safety & Security, Changi Airport Group (CAG) Singapore

Mr Tan currently oversees safety, security, emergency services and cyber-security at CAG.  He was previously EVP Airport Management,  overseeing airport management functions at Singapore’s Changi and Seletar Airports. Prior to CAG, Mr Tan held various management roles in the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore (CAAS), including as Deputy Director-General, before crossing over to CAG in 2009. In managing the airport, Mr Tan has overseen capacity management and continuing development of Changi Airport’s facilities, including opening the Budget Terminal in 2006, Terminal 3 in 2008, Terminal 4 in 2017 and Runway 3 in 2020.  He is currently overseeing the redevelopment of Terminal 2. Mr Tan was a member of the ICAO Committee on Aviation Environmental Protection (CAEP), ICAO Facilitation Panel and past Chairman of the Facilitation and Services Committee of the Airports Council International (ACI). He is currently on the advisory board of the Singapore Aviation Academy as well as Experia, which organises the Singapore Airshow.

ME8 (1-star) (Ret) Timothy Yap
Former Head Air Engineering and Logistics, RSAF

ME8 (Ret) Mr Timothy Yap was the Head Air Engineering and Logistics in the Republic of Singapore Air Force (RSAF) from 2019 until his retirement in 2024. In this role, he was responsible for the airworthiness of all RSAF aircraft, both locally and across permanent detachments in the USA, France, Australia, Thailand, and Brunei, overseeing critical fleet decisions. He was also responsible for managing the RSAF’s annual maintenance budget. He led the development and deployment of more than 3,000 Air Force Engineers and oversaw more than 100 maintenance contracts. With over three decades of experience in engineering, maintenance, governance, supply chain, and financial management, he has supported nitiatives such as National Day Parade operations and humanitarian airlift missions. He holds a Master of Arts (Defence Studies) from King’s College London, a Bachelor of Laws from the University of London, and a Bachelor of Engineering from the National University of Singapore.