April 2025 was a month of success for EUROAVIA Leuven. We organized two major events: one of them a first for our team, the Career Track, and the other, our flagship evening of lectures, Aero in Flanders.
First, the Career Track. At AS Leuven, our main goal is connecting our members with the aerospace industry, and the Career Track is the perfect event to accomplish this. For several weeks, each Tuesday evening, we visited a different aerospace company. These evenings began with a short introductory presentation, followed by a tour of the facilities and ending with a small workshop or a case-solving activity.
The first company we visited was Brussels Airlines. The highlight of the evening was touring their maintenance hall, where two aircraft , an A320 and an A330-300, were undergoing maintenance. Our members enjoyed seeing how these procedures take place. Afterwards, Brussels Airlines presented four real-life cases that had occurred on their aircraft. For one evening, we became part of their maintenance engineering team, tasked with identifying problems and creating maintenance plans. This hands-on experience was a big success and gave our members a true taste of their potential future careers.
Next, we visited Arcsec, a growing startup that designs star trackers and reaction wheels for small satellites. We learned how star trackers work, how they’re built, and how Arcsec began its journey. During the tour, we visited their cleanroom, assembly area, and testing setups. Later, we were challenged to design and pitch a mechanism to automate one of their test setups. The winner of this mini case competition earned a prize, and possibly a future career!
Our second major event of the month was Aero in Flanders, our flagship lecture evening held every two years (alternating with Space in Flanders). This year’s edition began with a presentation on EUROAVIA and all the opportunities available through AS Leuven. Then, BE Rocket, a Flemish interuniversity technical team, showcased their project and goals. Several KU Leuven PhD students presented their research, including one on innovative hydrogen tank designs and another on drone technology as small as a hummingbird. Finally, three companies, Brussels Airlines, Droneport, and Sabca—presented their work in aerospace innovation. The evening concluded with a reception where attendees could connect with speakers.
This was April for AS Leuven. In May, we look forward to our very first job fair and recruitment event!