From its creation in 1963, the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) has organized conferences to serve the aerospace profession as part of its core mission. Spanning over 70 technical discipline areas, AIAA’s conferences provide scientists, engineers, and technologists the opportunity to present and disseminate their work in structured technical paper and poster sessions, learn about new technologies and advances from other presenters, further their professional development, and expand their professional networks that furthers their work. 

In 2012, AIAA made the decision to transition to a new event model starting in 2014. This new model co-locates and incorporates AIAA’s individual technical conferences as part of five major forums, each focusing on a major theme — Science and Technology, Aviation, Space, Propulsion and Energy, Defense. These new forums will help AIAA maintain and strengthen its role as the technical leader while becoming more relevant to a larger segment of the aerospace community. The forum strategy will enhance our events to serve a broad cross section of the membership and our industry — not only those members focused in the traditional aerospace technologies but also those working further up the “product chain,” in process execution and mission applications as well as integration and systems. It was also to increase communication among the different “groups” involved in the aerospace development chain, which will benefit all involved and increase innovative outcomes.

The AIAA Science and Technology Forum and Exposition (AIAA SciTech Forum) has continued to grow in each succeeding year, drawing participants from around the globe. Plenary and Forum 360 participants tackled the most pressing issues impacting the future of aerospace, while the technical program presented innovative research and technologies that offer solutions.