IFA John Saull Memorial Event 2026
Tuesday 10 November 2026
Cranfield University, IDEAS Area, AIRC
The International Federation of Airworthiness (IFA) is delighted to invite members and friends of the Federation to join us at Cranfield University for the 2026 John Saull Memorial Event.
The John Saull Memorial Event is an opportunity for the IFA community to come together – to share experience, hear from leading figures in aviation, recognise the achievements of the next generation and, most importantly, continue the conversations that help make aviation safer.
This year’s event brings together industry experience, an extraordinary aviation story, awards, discussion and networking for a day designed to be both informative and engaging.
Our headline session will see Mick Adams and David Malins take us behind the scenes of an extraordinary aviation challenge:
Recovering a Giant from Storage to Flight
How do you take an Airbus A380 that has spent years in storage in the desert and return it to the skies?
Mick and David will share their experience of the delivery of an A380 12-year check, exploring at a high level the challenges involved in bringing a very large aircraft back from long-term storage and preparing it for flight.
The session will be followed by an open Q&A, giving attendees the opportunity to put their questions directly to Mick and David and explore the realities behind a project of this scale.
Mick Adams has more than four decades of aviation experience and was formerly CEO of STS Aviation Services, where he played a key role in the organisation’s expansion from a single narrow-body aircraft facility in Newquay to major MRO operations in Birmingham and Manchester. Mick is a Fellow of the Royal Aeronautical Society and has received numerous industry awards, including the IFA Turnbuckle Award and Aviation Week’s Lifetime Achievement Award.
David Malins brings extensive experience across aviation, airworthiness and safety, including his former role as Head of Airworthiness at the UK Civil Aviation Authority. His career has encompassed fast jets, rotary operations and large commercial aircraft, including the A380, as well as work across the regulatory and industry environments.
Together, Mick and David will offer a unique perspective on the people, processes and airworthiness challenges involved in returning a giant of the aviation world to service.
Celebrating the next generation
We will formally present the IFA / John Saull / Cranfield University Scholarship, recognising and supporting the development of the next generation of aviation and airworthiness professionals.
The scholarship reflects the legacy of John Saull and the IFA’s commitment to encouraging professional development and supporting those who will shape the future of our industry.
Recognising excellence in aviation safety
We will also present the Frank Whittle Safety Award, celebrating an individual who has made an outstanding contribution to aviation safety.
The award provides an opportunity for the IFA community to recognise someone whose work, commitment or influence has made a meaningful difference to aviation safety.
Your experience. Your ideas. Your perspective.
The day will also include an interactive discussion session, bringing attendees together around the table to explore current challenges and opportunities facing airworthiness and aviation.
Expect open conversation, different perspectives and the opportunity to draw on the collective experience in the room.
Whether you have decades of aviation experience or are relatively new to the industry, your experience and perspective can contribute to the discussion.
And, of course, there will be plenty of opportunity throughout the day to catch up with fellow IFA members, meet new people and continue conversations over refreshments.
Who should attend?
The event is open to IFA members and invited guests, with attendees expected from across the aviation and airworthiness community.
We particularly welcome those working in, or with an interest in, airworthiness, aviation safety, maintenance, regulation, engineering and aviation operations, as well as students and those at earlier stages of their careers.
Whether you have been involved with the IFA for decades or are relatively new to the Federation, this is an opportunity to meet the IFA community, share your experience and hear from others across the industry.
Event details
Date: Tuesday 10 November 2026
Venue: Cranfield University, IDEAS Area, AIRC
Agenda
9:30 – Arrival and refreshments
10:00 – Welcome and introduction
10:15 – Recovering a Giant from Storage to Flight – Mick Adams & David Malins
11:30 – Break / refreshments
11:45 – Interactive discussion session
13:15 – Networking Lunch
14:00 – IFA / John Saull / Cranfield University Scholarship presentation
14:15 – Frank Whittle Safety Award presentation
14:30 – Close/Optional Cranfield University Tour
This event is FREE to attend.
Support the IFA
The IFA is a member-led organisation, and events such as this are made possible through the support of our members, partners and wider aviation community.
If you would like to support the IFA’s work, please consider making a donation.
Even better, if you are not already a member, why not join the IFA?
Your support helps us continue to provide opportunities for the aviation community to share knowledge, develop the next generation of professionals and promote safety and airworthiness.
Thank you for considering supporting the IFA.
We look forward to welcoming you to Cranfield University on Tuesday 10 November.
Life and work of John Saull
John Saull was born in Hale, Cheshire in 1935, and educated at Altrincham Grammar school. He took an early interest in civil aviation, working for a small aerial photography and charter company at Ringway (Manchester) airport, where he spent his leisure hours working on the aeroplanes and flying in them whenever to opportunity arose.
After leaving school, he took an Aeronautical Engineering Apprenticeship at A.V.Roe, Manchester, which he completed in 1958. During this period he worked on Vulcan bomber production including some flight testing, and space projects. He subsequently became the first technical representative on the AVRO 748 commuter aircraft and went to Argentina in 1961 on board the first aircraft for the national airline, based in Buenos Aires.
By 1963, John had been invited to join the Air Registration Board (ARB), the UK airworthiness regulator. Cranfield College of Aeronautics was John’s next venue where he obtained an Air Transport Engineering degree and took the “unmissable” opportunity to obtain his Private Pilots Licence flying Auster aircraft, one of which he has co-owned for some 30 years.
In 1966, John moved to Bristol and took the responsibility for the oversight of the construction standards of the supersonic airliner, Concorde. John found the work on Concorde fascinating, it took him to all the UK manufacturing plants and to the French assembly line in Toulouse, on regular liaison visits. He was involved with the development of the aircraft from initial build of the prototypes through to airline route proving and made several flights during this time.
His next assignment was in Trinidad, West Indies, where he took up the management of a team of UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) airworthiness advisors to the Directors of Civil Aviation in many of the Caribbean islands, effectively from Guyana to Belize, which followed UK regulation standards.
John held several senior positions with the CAA, finally retiring as head of operating standards in late November 1995, after 32 years as a safety regulator.
He served as a member of the Council of the Royal Aeronautical Society and was a Liveryman of the Guild of Air Pilots and Air Navigators. He continued his flying and aviation technical safety work as Executive Director of The International Federation of Airworthiness for 20 years. John also co-authored two published technical books on the safety record of technological industries.
