Princess Anne has presented the Prince Philip Medal from the Royal Academy of Engineering to Dr Asad Madni.
Her Royal Highness was asked to perform this task for two reasons: besides being the only daughter of the late Duke of Edinburgh, she is also a Royal Fellow of the Academy, following in the footsteps of her father, who held the position of Senior Fellow.
And so, on Tuesday, 8th November, the Princess Royal arrived for the ceremony, which honoured Dr Madni, a pioneer in space technology.
He developed the control system of the Hubble Telescope’s star selector, as well as a safety system that is used worldwide in more than 90 aircraft and more than 80 models of passenger cars. This latter system is uses for “guidance, navigation and control”, ensuring “automotive stability and rollover protection”, according to the Academy.
The Prince Philip Medal is handed out every two years to “an engineer of any nationality who has made an exceptional contribution” to the field. The award is named after the late Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, who was himself very much interested in that field.
The first Medal was handed out in 1991, after the Academy came to an agreement for the institution of that award in 1989; in line with Prince Philip’s interests, the first medal was presented to Sir Frank Whittle, the Air Commodore responsible for the invention fo the jet engine.
The Prince Philip Medal is not the first award that Dr Madni has received for his work, as his contributions to engineering have been recognised worldwide with more than 100 honours, six honorary doctorates and as many honorary professorships.
Upon receiving his award, Dr Madni said partly: “Receiving the Prince Philip Medal, the Royal Academy of Engineering’s most prestigious individual honour, with a roster of past recipients that includes giants whose contributions have shaped human progress, is truly a most gratifying and humbling experience”.
