The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) has named three Embry‑Riddle Aeronautical University faculty members to its 2026 Class of Associate Fellows — an honor recognizing their outstanding contributions to the field of aerospace.

The new associate fellows — Professor Mark Benton Sr., Dr. Daewon Kim and Dr. Michael Kinzel — all serve on Embry‑Riddle’s Aerospace Engineering faculty.

“The recognition of three Embry‑Riddle faculty members as part of the 2026 Class of AIAA Associate Fellows underscores their exceptional talent, leadership, and impact on the future of aerospace,” said Embry‑Riddle President P. Barry Butler, Ph.D. “Their selection also showcases Embry‑Riddle’s dedication to fostering top-tier talent and our faculty's continued distinction by this renowned aerospace organization.”

AIAA — one of the world’s most  prestigious aerospace professional societies — said in its recent  of the 2026 class that the honorees were chosen because they “have accomplished or been in charge of important engineering or scientific work, have done original work of outstanding merit, or have otherwise made outstanding contributions to the arts, sciences or technology of aeronautics or astronautics.”

Driving Human Space Exploration

Benton, associate professor of Aerospace Engineering on the Prescott Campus, was cited by AIAA as having been selected “for outstanding contributions to the advancement of the state of the art in interplanetary spacecraft and planetary landers for human exploration, reusable launch vehicles and hypersonic vehicles.”

Katherine Wood, interim dean of the Prescott College of Engineering, called Benton one of the outstanding faculty members teaching in the College of Engineering.

“This significant achievement highlights the level of professional experience we bring to our students’ classroom experience,” she said.

Benton has worked in the aerospace industry and government space programs, including as vehicle design integrated product team lead for the U.S. Air Force/NASA X-30 National Aero-Space Plane and the NASA X-33 Reusable Launch Vehicle programs at Rockwell, as well as for the NASA Second Generation Reusable Launch Vehicle and Orbital Space Plane programs at Northrop Grumman.

“This recognition from AIAA is a singular achievement in my aerospace engineering career,” Benton said. “I look forward to continuing my aerospace vehicle design work to help advance the state of the art in human space exploration.”

Developing Next-Generation Manufacturing Tech

Kim, a professor of Aerospace Engineering and interim associate dean for research and graduate studies for the College of Engineering on the Daytona Beach Campus, was selected “for important contributions to transformative advancements in future manufacturing, adaptive structures and intelligent space systems, as well as mentoring of the next generation of aerospace researchers,” according to AIAA.

Kim, who earned both his bachelor’s and master’s degrees at Embry‑Riddle, began his research career with a focus on structural health monitoring of aerospace structures with waves propagated by ceramics that generate a charge when mechanical stress is applied to them. This led him into additive manufacturing, adaptive and origami structures, in-space manufacturing and robotic mechanisms for space debris removal.

Kim is responsible for significant advances in the development of next-generation manufacturing technologies, adaptive structures and intelligent space systems. Regarding his election as an AIAA associate fellow, Kim said, “This recognition reflects the incredible mentorship, collaboration and support I have received from colleagues and students throughout my career.”

Advancing Tools to Innovate Aerospace Systems

Kinzel, associate professor of Aerospace Engineering, joined Embry‑Riddle’s Daytona Beach Campus faculty in 2024 and is establishing a research program in high-fidelity modeling of fluid dynamics and aerodynamics, as well as atmospheric modeling. His research has advanced the areas of aerodynamics, turbulence, multiphase flows and hypersonics.

Previously, Kinzel served as an associate professor at the University of Central Florida and on the research faculty at Pennsylvania State University. He also worked in industry with Enron Wind Energy, General Electric’s Wind Division and Bechtel.

In 2017, Kinzel received the Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division Commander’s Award for work on advanced arresting gear used on aircraft carriers to stop landing aircraft with the help of energy-absorbing water turbines.

AIAA cited Kinzel for his “contributions to applied computational fluid dynamics, aerodynamic design, multidisciplinary analysis and advancing such tools to design and innovate aerospace systems.”

Anouck Girard, chair of the Department of Aerospace Engineering on Embry‑Riddle’s Daytona Beach Campus, offered congratulations to the new associate fellows “on this outstanding achievement.”

“Their recognition reflects the impact of their work and the excellence that defines our faculty,” Girard added.

AIAA is the world’s largest aerospace technical society, with nearly 30,000 members from 91 countries. To be selected as an associate fellow, an individual must be an AIAA senior member, with at least 12 years of professional experience, and be recommended by three AIAA members.

 “This distinguished group of professionals has performed extraordinary work and advanced the state of science and technology in aeronautics and astronautics,” AIAA President Dan Hastings said of the 2026 class of associate fellows. “They exemplify a dedication to excellence in their specific technical disciplines. We are proud of their achievements as they shape the future of aerospace.”