The Education Committee (EC) is happy to announce the following six short courses to be given at the 35th International Symposium on Ballistics (IBS) in Cape Town, South Africa:
Advanced 201 lectures
Sunday, 25th October, 2026, PM sessions (1 pm to 5 pm)
- EB201: Exterior Ballistics Beyond Classical Models: Scientific Machine Learning and PINNs by RAJESH, Gopalapillai from IIT, India
Dr. Rajesh G is a Professor in the Department of Aerospace Engineering at the Indian Institute of Technology Madras (IIT Madras), India. He received his Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering from Andong National University, South Korea, and has over two decades of experience in teaching and research in aerospace engineering.
His research expertise spans interior and exterior ballistics, experimental aerodynamics, and shockwave dynamics, with particular focus on projectile flight dynamics, supersonic and hypersonic flow phenomena, blast mitigation, and transition in high-speed boundary layers. Dr. Rajesh has extensive experience in both theoretical modeling and experimental investigations, contributing to the understanding of high-speed flow physics relevant to aerospace and defense applications. Before joining IIT Madras in 2013, he served as an Assistant Professor at the Indian Institute of Space Science and Technology (IIST), as a Scientist/Engineer at the Liquid Propulsion Systems Centre (LPSC), ISRO, and as an Assistant Professor at Keimyung University, South Korea. Dr. Rajesh has supervised several doctoral researchers and has authored more than 150 publications in leading international journals and conferences. He is a Life Member of the International Ballistics Society, a Governing Council Member of the Society for Shockwave Research (India), and a Life Member of the International Shock Wave Institute. His current work focuses on advanced ballistic systems, ammunition and weapon technologies, and fundamental aspects of shockwave dynamics, contributing to both academic research and applied aerospace and defense technologies.
- VS201: Small Arms Forensic Ballistics Engineering by LAMAGNA, David from American Forensic, USA
Davd J. Lamagna – Forensic Engineer
David J. Lamagna works as a forensic engineer for American Forensic Technologies LLC in Coral Gables, Florida, USA. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Plastics Engineering, and a Master of Science degree in Materials Science and Engineering. He has also completed more than 50% of the requirements for his PhD in Engineering. Both of his engineering degrees, and additional academic work toward his PhD were completed at the University of Massachusetts. He has also completed close to two thousand hours of specialized forensic and law enforcement training courses that are relevant to his work as a forensic engineer, and as a former law enforcement officer. He had worked in the industrial machinery field in the USA at the beginning of his professional engineering career. During the last thirty seven years he has worked within the law enforcement community as both a law enforcement officer, as a forensic engineer, and as a licensed private investigator involved in the investigation and forensic engineering analysis of shooting incidents and other crimes of violence. He has also been actively involved court challenges to out dated forensic practices related to forensic firearm examination and identification. He has been involved in introducing state-of-the-art engineering science and technology into the forensic field since 1993. He has worked on numerous homicide and other crimes of violence cases for the last 37 years of his professional career.
Introductory 101 lectures
Monday, 26th October, 2026, AM sessions (8 am to 12 pm)
- IB101: Introductory Interior Ballistics by SUCHEENDRAN, Mahesh from IIT Hyderabad, India
Mahesh Sucheendran has been a faculty member in the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering at the Indian Institute of Technology Hyderabad, India since 2016. He attended the Indian Institute of Technology, Madras and obtained the Bachelor of Technology and Master of Technology degrees in Aerospace Engineering in 2004. Subsequent to that, he worked as a Scientist in the Aerodynamics R & D Division of Indian Space Research Organisation till 2007. Further, he attended the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, graduating with a Ph.D. in Aerospace Engineering in 2013. On returning to India, he joined as an Assistant Professor in the Aerospace Engineering Department of Defence Institute of Advanced Technology, Pune. He has done various projects related to Ballistics, Aerodynamics, Aeroacoustics and Aeroelasticity for various aerospace and defence agencies like the Armament Research & Development Establishment, Armament Research Board, Advanced Naval Systems Program, Aeronautical Development Agency and Advanced Systems Laboratory of India. He is a lifetime member of the International Ballistics Society.
- EM101: Introductory Explosion Mechanics by MOSTERT, Frikkie from Explophys, South Africa
Dr Frederik Johannes Mostert obtained a PhD in Physics from the University of Stellenbosch in 1983. From 1983 to 2005 he worked at Somchem (division of Denel), which later became Denel Munitions. From 1993 to 2005 he held the position of Chief Scientist in the Detonics section of the Rockets and Missile department. From 2005 to 2020 he was employed by the Landward Sciences group of the Defence Peace Safety and Security (DPSS) division of the CSIR in Pretoria, as Principal Scientist. After his retirement from the CSIR in 2020 he joined DeltaV-Aerospace (Pty) ltd., as the head of the Detonics Department. He held this position until June 2023 before starting his own consulting company, ExploPhys (Pty) Ltd., in July 2023. He currently specializes in mentorship of young talent in the Explosion Mechanics field at various institutions.
Dr Mostert has authored and co-authored more than 30 peer reviewed papers in the field of Explosion Mechanics and Terminal Ballistics, and made many contributions to various proceedings of the International Symposium on Ballistics. He was co-recipient of the Neil Griffiths Memorial Award, on two occasions, for the best contribution in the field of shaped charges.
Monday, 26th October, 2026, PM sessions (1 pm to 5 pm)
- EB101: Introductory Exterior Ballistics by de BRIEY, Veronique from RMA, Belgium
Major Véronique de Briey is an Associate Professor in Ballistics & Weapon Systems in the Royal Military Academy in Brussels. She holds a Master of Science in Ballistics & Weapon Systems and a PhD in Engineering Sciences and Technology from the Royal Military Academy and the University of Liège, with a specialization in Exterior Ballistics. She also recently completed a University Certificate in Forensics at the Université Libre de Bruxelles. She is currently leading and contributing to several defense research programs, covering both fundamental modeling and applied defense technologies, in support of Belgian Defense and NATO working groups in her field.
- TB101: Introductory Terminal Ballistics by Dr. Charles Vasconcelos
Dr. Charles Vasconcelos has been an Associate Professor at the Almirante Braz de Aguiar Instruction Center (CIABA), Brazilian Navy, since 2014, where he teaches and conducts research in Materials Engineering, Welding Metallurgy, and Mechanical Characterization.
He holds a B.Sc. degree in Mechanical Engineering, an M.Sc. degree in Mechanical Engineering with specialization in Materials and Manufacturing Processes, and a Ph.D. in Materials Science and Engineering from the Military Institute of Engineering (IME), Brazil. His research focuses on the mechanical and metallurgical behavior of materials for naval and defense applications.
He currently leads and collaborates on research projects with civilian and military institutions, focusing on the development and characterization of materials for structural applications and naval ballistic protection, as well as other defense-related applications. His work combines experimental and numerical approaches, contributing to advances in materials engineering, ballistics, and technologies for naval systems and Armored Personnel Carriers (APCs).
Dr. Charles Vasconcelos also serves as a reviewer for international scientific journals and is a member of the International Ballistics Society (IBS).