Michael Cervenka

Chief Commercial and Strategy officer at one of the world’s leading eVTOL start-ups and a pioneer in sustainable aviation. Michael has overseen incredible growth since joining Vertical in 2019, with the company transitioning from a 40-person start-up to listing on the NYSE within 2 years, flying multiple full-scale prototypes and building a record $6bn order book for 1500 VX4 aircraft from some of the world’s leading aircraft operators and lessors including American Airlines, Avolon, Japan Airlines and Bristow. He played a pivotal in shaping both the company strategy and aircraft design, securing funding and fostering strategic partnerships with the likes of Honeywell, Microsoft and Bristow.

Before joining Vertical, Michael spent over two decades at Rolls-Royce after graduating with a first class honours degree in Aeronautical Engineering from Bristol University. He progressed through increasingly senior roles in design, development and service support across a wide range of Rolls-Royce civil and military aero engines. Most recently, as Head of Future Technologies reporting to the group CTO, he co-wrote the group’s electrical strategy, routinely reported to the board on disruptive technology and business model threats and opportunities and led a global multidisciplinary team responsible for generating future concepts and developing, protecting and transferring cutting edge technologies across all of the Rolls-Royce businesses.