Austro Engine (AE), manufacturers of the jet-fuel powered AE300 and AE330 engines that propel Diamond aircraft to such great heights, welcomed industry veteran Jürgen Schwarz to the leadership team in January 2025.
Schwarz – whose extensive career has seen him head engine development at Mercedes AMG and fulfill top leadership positions at Continental Aerospace and, most recently, Raikhlin Aircraft – will guide AE’s strategic and operational reorganization.
Read our Q&A with Schwarz below to learn more about his plans for the company.
Welcome, Jürgen, to the wider Diamond Aircraft family! Now that you’ve had a week or two to familiarize yourself with AE, what are your first impressions?
Thank you very much for the warm welcome here at Austro Engine! The first two weeks were full of new impressions and eventful too, of course. But I can already say that I can count on an extremely motivated and qualified team.
What drew you to your new role?
I have a long history and friendly relationship with Diamond Aircraft and Austro Engine. From a professional point of view, it’s very interesting to be more integrated in the overall “aircraft” project and not solely on engines.
What’s your vision moving forward? What long-term goals do you hope to achieve as General Manager?
My goal is to work with the team to further develop Austro Engine into the first-choice engine manufacturer and powerplant integrator in the field of General Aviation. This includes in the areas of development through to production excellence and ends with customer satisfaction.
In what ways will you bring your extensive industry knowledge to bear at AE?
I think that I can use my network within the industry to my advantage, ranging from contacts with the authorities to the supply chain and our market companions. Internally, I will put my knowledge to good use in development and focus on safety and customer satisfaction.
How do you see the industry developing over the next five to ten years?
That is a very interesting question. We are currently undergoing a change in the field of powertrain systems. Environmental compatibility is increasingly becoming the focus of development. Diamond Aircraft / Austro Engine set off in the right direction very early on with their highly efficient kerosene powered engines. Now, the focus is on SAF and in the future we will have to focus more on hybridization and electrification.
How do you motivate your teams to give their best?
For me, the key to a motivated team is above all open, straightforward communication. We have a highly emotional product, and that makes it easy to get the team behind it.