Bulent Sarlioglu named fellow of the Royal Aeronautical Society

The London-based Royal Aeronautical Society (RAeS) has named Bulent Sarlioglu, a professor of electrical and computer engineering at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, a fellow.

The RAeS is the only professional body dedicated to the aerospace, aviation, and space communities and aims to further the advancement of aeronautical art, science, and engineering around the world. The grade of fellow is the society’s highest membership level and is awarded to those who have made outstanding contributions to aerospace and related professions.

Sarlioglu, the technology and collaboration director of the Wisconsin Electric Machines and Power Electronics Consortium (WEMPEC), designs, simulates and prototypes a wide array of electrical machines, drives and electronic circuits, incorporating new techniques and materials. The goal of his research is to benefit electrified vehicles, aerospace and industrial applications.

Sarlioglu is a leader in electric aviation, working on projects to improve power, reduce size and increase reliability of electric aviation motors and power electronic drives. He routinely leads special sessions and tutorials on electric aviation for IEEE and other organizations. In 2024, Sarlioglu received the IEEE Power Electronics Society Outstanding Achievement Award in Aerospace Power, just one of many awards for technical achievement he’s received throughout his career.

He has 26 U.S. patents, many international patents, and has published over 340 conference and journal papers. Sarlioglu has served as chair of the IEEE Power Electronics Society Motor Subcommitte, the Industrial Applications Society (IAS) Transportation Systems Committee, and as a Distinguished Lecturer for the IEEE IAS and Vehicle Technology Society. He is a fellow of the National Academy of Inventors and an IEEE Fellow.

Sarlioglu is particularly proud of his selection as a Royal Aeronautical Society Fellow. “The application of electric motors and power electronics in aerospace has been a long-standing passion of mine, making this recognition especially meaningful,” he says. “There are significant opportunities to advance more electric aircraft (MEA) toward electrified propulsion systems for future aircraft. This area offers substantial research and development potential across academia and the aerospace industry. At the same time, it is essential to educate and train the next generation of engineers to become future leaders in this field.”

New RAeS fellows will be formally recognized at a reception later this year.