Very often based on lessons learned from aircraft accidents, design methods and processes for compliance demonstration with applicable standards have been established that are able to increase the level of safety for the occupants of an aircraft. The topic of the session covers new solutions to the “classic” structural design aspects for crashworthiness, such as structural integrity and energy absorption characteristics of the airframe, efficient restraint systems, minimized environmental hazards from loose or sharp objects, and reduced post-crash hazards from fire, smoke and fumes. Beyond these traditional crashworthiness considerations, and in view of new trends in aircraft design, the session also includes novel features of innovative propulsion systems and propellants such as electrical, mechanical, chemical, and functional safety of electric power trains or fuel cells and the storage and on-board handling of hydrogen. Finally, the session is also open to operational aspects, for instance, recovery systems or human factors.
 

Most of engineering components can fail catastrophically in service due to surface degradation. The ever-increasing requirements for high performance, high productivity, high power efficiency, and low carbon footprint lead to more and more challenging service environments and pre-mature failure of industry parts and systems. This session will provide a platform for reviewing the recent progress in the development of innovative surface protection technologies, anticipating challenges and opportunities, and exploring future research directions in combating surface related failure through advanced surface engineering.   

This special session will delve into the latest breakthroughs in metal additive manufacturing, encompassing both fusion-based and solid-state techniques. We will explore technologies that rely on feedstock melting and material fusion, as well as those that induce bonding through kinetic energy and plastic deformation. Given the multidisciplinary nature of this subject, we will consider the impacts of process parameters, material responses, surface characteristics, microstructural aspects, and geometrical features. The applications of these technologies span across various sectors, including space, aerospace, automotive, building, and biomedical industries.
The goal of this session is to create an international platform for academic and industrial contributors to share ideas on recent innovations and advancements in various AM technologies, and to discuss future opportunities and applications. We welcome contributions from both experimental studies and numerical developments. Topics of interest include, but are not limited to:

• Cold spray additive manufacturing 
• Binder-jet additive manufacturing
• Laser/Electron beam-powder bed additive manufacturing 
• Directed Energy deposition technologies
• Post-processing technologies for additive manufacturing
• AM technologies for repair and geometrical restorations

We look forward to your participation and contributions to this exciting session.
 

The demand for lightweight, high-performance, and sustainable structures has driven a growing interest in hybrid and multi-material systems that strategically combine metals, polymers, and fibre-reinforced composites. This session focuses on the latest advances in the design, manufacturing, and characterisation of such structures, addressing challenges related to joining and interfaces, residual stress control, damage tolerance, and long-term durability. Contributions covering experimental and numerical approaches, hybrid joining techniques (adhesive bonding, welding, mechanical fastening), and integrated digital design methods are particularly welcome. The session also encourages works on multi-scale modelling, topology optimisation, and AI-assisted frameworks for the design and performance prediction of hybrid structures across aerospace, automotive, marine, and energy applications. The aim is to foster interdisciplinary discussion and collaboration toward next-generation lightweight, sustainable, and damage-tolerant structural solutions.