From August 28 to 30, Beihang University & The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) Bilateral Symposium on Large Aircraft was held at the Shahe Campus of Beihang University.

The event was hosted by the School of Aeronautic Science and Engineering of Beihang University and co-organized by the COMAC-Beihang Institute of Commercial Aircraft Technology and the Key Laboratory of Advanced Aircraft Design Technology under the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology. Professor Yin Sha from the School of Aeronautic Science and Engineering at Beihang and Professor Su Zhongqing from the Department of Mechanical Engineering at PolyU served as co-chairs of the symposium. Twelve faculty members from the Department of Mechanical Engineering and the Department of Aeronautical and Aviation Engineering at PolyU and over 20 faculty members from the School of Aeronautics at Beihang participated in the event.

The symposium focused on cutting-edge technologies in the aerospace field, with "large aircraft" serving as the central theme and "low-altitude economy" as an extension. Professor Mai Yiu Wing, Distinguished Chair Professor from the Department of Mechanical Engineering at PolyU, and Professor Wang Qingyun, the Discipline Responsible Professor of Dynamics and Control from the School of Aeronautics at Beihang, were invited to deliver keynote speeches titled "Past, Present and Future on Composites Research–A Personal View" and "Neurodynamics and Bio-inspired Intelligent Control" respectively.

21 invited reports were also arranged around the two themes of large aircraft and low-altitude economy, covering cutting-edge areas such as large aircraft design and manufacturing, advanced materials and structures, intelligent sensing and health monitoring, aeroacoustics and flow control, new energy aircraft, low-altitude transportation systems, airspace management, and human-machine interaction. The two sides also exchanged information on Beihang's scientific research and talent recruitment policies in aerospace, as well as PolyU's scientific research and talent development pathways in aviation and mechanical engineering.

The symposium deepened mutual understanding and trust among participants from both sides, fully demonstrating the scientific research capabilities and innovative achievements of the two universities in the fields of large aircraft and low-altitude economy.

Through exchanges during the event, both sides identified more areas for complementary strengths and agreed to promote "Chinese Mainland-Hong Kong Special Administrative Region" integration and "Science & Technology-Education-Talent" collaboration through resource sharing and the establishment of joint laboratories. As part of the social classroom component for the Top-Tier Mechanics Class of Beihang's Shen Yuan Honors College, the symposium also attracted over 40 junior and senior students from the program.

This symposium marks a crucial step forward in implementing the cooperation framework agreement signed by the two universities on October 30, 2024, and deepening substantive collaboration. It holds significant importance for the future in-depth integration of the two universities in talent development, scientific research cooperation, and technological innovation, and will also contribute to the global development strategy of the School of Aeronautic Science and Engineering and Beihang University.

Editor:Liu Tingting