Postdoc Position Resolution Urban CFD Simulations and Measurements Urban Air Mobility

Postdoc Position - High-Resolution Urban CFD Simulations and Measurements for Urban Air Mobility

Advance Urban Air Mobility through high-resolution CFD simulations, 3D urban modelling and real-world measurements. Join TU Delft to improve the safety and sustainability of future urban aviation!

The 3D Geoinformation research group at TU Delft is looking for a highly motivated Postdoctoral Researcher to join the European project IAM‑CC. In this interdisciplinary project, you will investigate how detailed 3D urban models and computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations can improve the prediction of urban airflow and the effects of Urban Air Mobility (UAM) operations.

Urban environments present complex aerodynamic challenges. The growth of Urban Air Mobility creates new demands for understanding wind patterns, turbulence, and UAM downwash in densely built areas. In this position, you will develop and apply methodologies that combine urban reconstruction, high-resolution CFD simulations, and field measurements to improve the accuracy and reliability of urban flow predictions.

• Reconstruct urban environments at different levels of detail for CFD applications.
• Perform CFD simulations of urban airflow including UAM downwash effects.
• Develop and apply workflows for three major European cities:
  Milan, Coimbra and Madrid.
• Conduct and analyse on‑site wind field measurements during project living labs, including UAM flight demonstrations in Milan.
• Validate numerical predictions using real-world measurement data.
• Collaborate with researchers and industry partners within the IAM‑CC consortium.
• Publish research findings in leading scientific journals and conferences.

• You hold a PhD degree, or are close to completion, in Aerospace Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Geoinformatics, Geomatics, Computer Science, Applied Mathematics or a related discipline.
• You have demonstrated experience with computational fluid dynamics and numerical simulations and/or experiments in fluid dynamics.
• You have experience with programming and scientific software development; experience with C++ is an advantage.
• Experience with machine learning, 3D city modelling or urban reconstruction techniques is beneficial.
• You are interested in combining simulation‑based research with experimental field measurements.
• You enjoy working in multidisciplinary and international research teams.
• You have excellent English communication skills, both written and spoken.
• You are motivated to contribute to high‑impact research on sustainable urban mobility and future aviation systems.

• Duration of contract is temporary for 2 years.
• A job of 38‑40 hours per week.
• Salary and benefits are in accordance with the Collective Labour Agreement for Dutch Universities.
• An excellent pension scheme via the ABP.
• The possibility to compile an individual employment package every year.
• Discount with health insurers on supplemental packages.
• Every year, 232 leave hours (at 38 hours). You can also sell or buy additional leave hours via the individual choice budget.
• Plenty of opportunities for education, training and courses.
• Partially paid parental leave.
• Attention for working healthy and energetically with the vitality program.

FTE: 1

Submission is possible until: 19 Jul 2026