Darlington graduate Marcus Sellars named aviation ambassador

Marcus Sellars, 22, has been announced as one of 10 new Aviation Ambassadors by the Department for Transport and will begin his role this month.

Mr Sellars, who works for the Tees Valley Combined Authority, will serve as the regional lead for automation in aviation, drawing on his experience with the autonomous vehicles trial at Teesside Airport.

Marcus Sellars (Image: Chris Booth)

Mr Sellars said: “It was nice and a pleasant surprise. I understand the role was highly competitive, with many people applying for it.

“I’m quite young so my pitch to them was I’m still in contact with universities and younger people – and I want to upskill people for jobs.”

The Aviation Ambassadors programme, part of the Generation Aviation scheme, aims to promote careers, training and skills in the aviation sector.

Marcus Sellars – ‘it was a pleasant surprise’ (Image: Chris Booth)

Ambassadors will engage with students through school visits, workshops and social media, targeting young people at primary, secondary and college level.

The Newcastle University graduate, who earned a distinction in his masters in transport engineering, joined the Combined Authority as an intern last summer.

He now works full-time in the digital transport team, focusing on technological innovation and change.

Mr Sellars also hopes to support the creation of an aviation academy to inspire the next generation.

He said: “There could definitely be a skills hub and cluster here to link all the different businesses and how they’re expanding.”

The Generation Aviation programme includes college talks, industry events and online promotion to showcase opportunities in aviation.

Mr Sellars said: “It’s a great honour to have been chosen in this role – and I’m really keen to represent our area, show some of the exciting work we’ve been doing around automation and transport at Teesside Airport and, hopefully, inspire more young people to take on a career in aviation.”

Tees Valley Mayor Ben Houchen said: “It’s brilliant to have one of our own talents leading the charge in the aviation industry.

“We’re proud to be leading the way in autonomous transport at our airport and we want it to play a big role in making our transport network better.

“It’s great to see Marcus taking on this role – he’s yet another great example of the wealth of talent we have on our doorstep.

“I wish him well over the next two years and I’m looking forward to hearing more about the work he’s doing in his new role very soon.”

Phil Forster, managing director of Teesside International Airport, praised Mr Sellars’ contribution.

Mr Forster said: “Marcus has been a great addition and his work on the testbed project has been top drawer.

“We’re proud to have him representing our region – and I’m sure he’ll do a wonderful job promoting both our airport and the wider aviation industry for young people to launch their careers.”

The new ambassadors will officially start their new roles on Wednesday, January 28.