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Dr. Wagdi Habashi wins prestigious award from Canadian Aeronautics and Space Institute

Published: 18 March 2011

Dr. Wagdi (Fred) Habashi has just been named the recipient of the 2011 McCurdy Award given out by the Canadian Aeronautics and Space Institute (CASI). The award is given to recognize outstanding achievement in the science and creative aspects of engineering relating to aeronautics and space research.

Prof. Wagdi Habashi is widely known in his field for the innovative formulation, modeling and application of finite element methods to computational fluid dynamics (CFD). His work has kept Canada 'on the map' in terms of worldwide CFD R&D. He has developed efficient applied mathematics solutions to a wide range of complex aerospace problems for aircraft, rotorcraft and jet engines. In the in-flight icing area, his unique formulation has resulted in a code used worldwide throughout the aerospace industry.

A McGill graduate, Habashi joined the McGill Faculty of Engineering in 2000, and holds the NSERC-J.-Armand Bombardier-Bell Helicopter-CAE Industrial Research Chair for Multidisciplinary Computational Fluid Dynamics. He is also an Honorary Professor at TongJi University (Shanghai).

Habashi is a co-founder of the supercomputer consortium CLUMEQ, the Canadian Society of CFD and of Quebec’s joint Master’s degree in Aerospace Engineering. Recognized around the world as a pioneer in his field, Habashi has received numerous scientific and industrial awards and accolades, including NSERC’s Steacie Prize, the Killam Prize in Engineering in 2009 and the James C. Floyd Award from the Aerospace Industries Association of Canada in 2010.

The McCurdy Award was introduced in 1954 by the Institute of Aircraft Technicians, one of the aeronautical groups that amalgamated to form CASI. It commemorates the many engineering and other contributions made by John A.D. McCurdy during the first stages of the development of the aviation industry in North America.

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