Professor & Head of Aviation, University of Southern Queensland
Professor Paul Bates is Foundation Professor and Head of Aviation at the University of Southern Queensland in Australia. He has held this position since 2015 when Aviation started at USQ. Before this appointment Professor Bates was Head of Aviation at another Australian University for approximately 20 years. Graduates of Programs he has designed and managed work in 50 different airlines around the globe.
Paul presided over the creation of the First Qantas Cadet program with a University and has worked closely with other colleagues to develop cadet programs with other Airlines.
Professor Bates has guided USQ’s membership as a foundation member of the Qantas Group Future Pilot Program. He was the Chair of the ICAO Next Generation of Aviation Professionals Outreach Committee for several years and has served with the International Pilot Training Association. Paul is very active in Aviation Safety research and is currently supervising around a dozen Doctoral research projects all with active industry participation. He is a Member of the Australian Tertiary Education Quality Standards Panel of Experts and a member of the Hong Kong Council for Accreditation of Academic Qualifications.
As you see Paul has a lifetime of experience in Aviation and higher education and he continues to work closely with Airlines, International Organisations and young people and this gives him a unique perspective.