Current Trends and Challenges in Unconventional Aircraft Conceptual Design ^†

Álvaro Cobo-González is an Aeronautical Engineer (MSc) from Universidad Politécnica de Madrid (UPM) and an Engineer (MSc) from Institut Supérieur de l’Aéronautique et de l’Espace (ISAE-SUPAERO). As of 2026, he has served as a Pre-Doctoral Professor in the Department of Aircraft and Spacecraft of the School of Aeronautical and Space Engineering (Escuela Técnica Superior de Ingeniería Aeronáutica y del Espacio) of UPM, with previous experience at Instituto Nacional de Técnica Aeroespacial (INTA), GMV, and Airbus. He graduated as the top student in his class with a Bachelor of Aeronautical Engineering from UPM and has been awarded several scholarships and honors, including the Best Aerospace Engineering Graduate in Spain by the Spanish Society of Academic Excellence (SEDEA) and the Best Final Year Project by IEEE Aerospace and Electronic Systems Society’s Spanish Chapter (IEEE-AESS) in 2021. He is pursuing a PhD on the conceptual design of unconventional commercial transport aircraft with Dr. Cristina Cuerno-Rejado as his supervisor. His main research areas include unconventional aircraft conceptual design, flight dynamics and flight control systems.

Cristina Cuerno-Rejado is a PhD Aeronautical Engineer and Full Professor of Aerospace Engineering in the Department of Aircraft and Spacecraft of the Faculty of Aeronautical and Space Engineering (Escuela Técnica Superior de Ingeniería Aeronáutica y del Espacio) of Universidad Politécnica de Madrid (UPM). During the period 2020-2024, she was the Director of this faculty. She obtained a prize for her PhD thesis and was granted a medal by the Spanish Ministry of Defense. Since 2010, she has made these tasks compatible with being a member of the Board of the Spanish Civil Aviation Air Accidents and Incidents Investigation Commission. In addition, she is a member of the Executive Committee of the RPAS Advisory Commission of the Spanish Civil Aviation Authority. Her main lines of research and teaching activity are focused on the conceptual design of both conventional and unconventional commercial transport aircraft and unmanned aircraft, airworthiness certification, and air accident investigation. She has taken part in more than 50 projects and research contracts, and she has published more than one hundred scientific documents, including articles, lectures at conferences, and books.