Roland Gerhards holds a Master Degree in Aerospace from RWTH Aachen and an Executive MBA from Purdue University. From 1997 until 2012 he has worked at Airbus in different positions (a. o. Executive Assistant to the Head of Engineering, Head of Design A330/A380 Front & Rear Fuselage, Head of Design Cabin Electric A380). Since 2012 Roland Gerhards is CEO at the ZAL Center of Applied Aeronautical Research.